Down In Heaven
by BregoArodShadowfax
Summary: Sequel to Maybe It Was. Even the afterlife has its problems. DEATHLY HALLOWS SPOILERS.
1. Starting Over

**Okay, I know I said that there wasn't going to be a sequel to **_**Maybe It Was**_**, but after my computer 'malfunctioned' and didn't acknowledge my pressing of the 'complete' button, a couple of reviewers asked if maybe a sequel was possible. That got me thinking…and I came up with an idea. Focuses mainly on the characters who have died at some point in the series, (so theyre in the afterlife), but as it has gone along I have added some glimpses back into the quote-unquote real world. Also, as should be obvious, this contains SPOILERS for Deathly Hallows, so I would advise those who do not know the ending of the book not to read it. This is currently my longest written fan fiction to date (already about 40000 words), and it's not finished yet. How much more I decide to add depends on how many reviews I get, so don't be afraid to tell me what you think! And if you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask, because I promise I'll respond to all reviews. Sometimes it may not be instantaneous, but I tend to check my account every day, so I should be fairly on top of things. **

**I guess this story could be considered slightly AU, because while the events described don't divert from the storyline at all, they **_**do **_**technically take place in a kind of alternate universe, namely the afterlife, which is described within and the product of my very overactive imagination. I must warn you all that I am notorious for taking characters a little to the side of being OOC, but since some of the characters in here aren't really described in detail in the books, I hope this can be overlooked. Don't be afraid to tell me, however, because I'll change it if it becomes a problem! **

**Warnings: Nothing really. I try not to use profanity in my writing, as I try not to use it in my speaking. Platonic love…as in, brotherly-but-not-romantic type of thing. Not that I don't approve of slash, because I've written some slash stories, but I know that it tends to alienate some readers. Therefore, all mentions of love should be taken as platonic, so I don't want to hear any flames about it, because I have given this warning. **

**And finally, to end my long and winding road of rambling: enjoy the fix c! And don't hesitate to drop a review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any recognizable character within, pity though this is. However, I **_**do **_**own the plotline and the ideas herein, so please do not steal them! Oh, and the title is from a Kalan Porter song…although it could be debated that the afterlife in this story may not be the epitome of Christian Heaven, and I am a Christian and believe in Heaven, I found it fitting. **

**Down In Heaven**

**Chapter One**

So Harry had done it. Voldemort was defeated, and Harry was alive. And Lupin was…wherever the wizard equivalent to Heaven was. Although at the moment he was sitting in the Gryffindor common room of Hogwarts-in-the-clouds, which a lot of wizards seemed to call home. Probably because, as it was for him and Sirius, it _had _been one of the only places that truly felt like home.

Also, Dumbledore seemed to find that it was easier to traipse back into his study in the physical world from his study in the spirit one, so he was always around.

And Severus was in the dungeon…hardly surprising, but to think that he had actually _liked _being down in the darkness all these years. Not to mention the other spirits that came and went on occasion, so he had been told…former students, for the most part, some from who-knows-how many years ago.

Lupin yawned, putting down the book he had found…just when he wanted to read, coincidentally, but he supposed that was all part of what this place was about. He felt tired; it _was _late…was he supposed to be tired? Maybe his soul was still adjusting to being out of a human body. Deciding he would go up to the dormitory to sleep, he was about to stand up when another figure entered the room.

"Evening, Padfoot."

Sirius didn't say anything; merely sat down in an armchair and glowered at the fire.

"Have I done something wrong?"

"It's not you," Sirius mumbled. "_You _are perfectly normal. Apparently _I _am the one who's doing something wrong."

A little surprised at the bitterness in his tone; he had seemed perfectly happy before they went to aid Harry; Lupin said, "You know you can talk to me about anything. What is it?"

"It's just…this is all so…different. You and…and Tonks, I mean. I guess I had just thought that…when you died, it would be like it always was. I mean, Lily and James are great but…they want to spend time together. Alone. Without me. And I thought I had always had you to count on…we would just be two bachelors, doing whatever we wanted without wives to hold us down. And now you tell me you're married. And to my cousin, no less! My cousin, who's over fifteen years younger than you are!" He stopped as he saw the shocked expression on Lupin's face. "I'm happy for you. Truly, I am, but I…darn it, Moony, I feel so alone. I almost…wanted…you to die, so that we could be together again. You don't know what it's like, not having somebody to talk to…somebody you're not afraid to say anything to."

"I do know," Lupin replied softly. "These past two years have been just as hard on me…"

"Don't give me that!" Sirius stood angrily. "You've had plenty of people to _talk _to, at least! I feel as if I don't even know James anymore, he's…different. And now I find that you are, too. I just want things to be the same." He paused, obviously furious, before turning on his heel and stalking out of the common room. Lupin stared after him in stunned amazement for a few moments before wearily trudging up the stairs and getting into the bed.

Somehow, things had just gotten more complicated.

000

Lupin woke up, the part of his body that still felt alive after thirty-seven years knowing instinctively that it was morning. Maybe it was something to do with what he was, but he almost never woke up before eight…because he knew that, even in the dead of winter, the moon would be gone.

So…what was there to do in this world? Seemingly, anything was possible, but he was sure there were some rules or _some_thing that kept people from doing whatever they wanted. Although as far as he could tell, only those people who had done something right in their life were here; he certainly hadn't seen any Death Eaters lurking around. Well, besides Snape, but he hardly counted as a Death Eater anymore.

Making up his mind that he was going to talk to Dumbledore, he started to pull off the covers when he realized that something…warm…was pressed up against him. He had been so deep in thought he had failed to notice that he wasn't alone in the bed.

Sirius. Lupin sighed, thinking of the row they had had the night before. He supposed he had always envisioned the two of them going on forever, alone but together, as well. He still felt guilty about Tonks, but it seemed as though he had almost been _pushed _into it. Everyone told him that it was right; that it was good for him, but he couldn't remember anyone ever asking him if it was what _he _wanted. He had never meant to hurt Tonks, and she was hurting before he had consented to marry her. But now he feared he may have just hurt her more.

Especially now that they were both dead. Would she even want to talk to him? Why hadn't he found her, yet? He sighed and absent-mindedly ran his fingers through Sirius' long black hair, still marvelling that he had managed to make the texture of his dog-coat feel exactly the same as his real hair. He and Sirius were so close, had been so close, they could practically read each other's minds. They often finished sentences or thoughts for one another, and even after all those years apart, their friendship hadn't wavered. Why should Sirius think everything would be different, now?

Lupin knew he was lonely, he could sympathize with everything except the fact that Sirius seemed to think he had changed. It had only been two years, and a lot of changes had taken place, but he doubted that he had changed as a person.

But none of that explained why, since last night Sirius had not even wanted to look at him, his fellow Marauder was curled up in the same bed as him. "Padfoot?" He asked quietly, thinking that maybe Sirius had meant to leave and had just fallen asleep.

The man in question stirred slightly and groaned, opening his grey eyes and mumbling something incoherent.

"Sirius, I'm sorry." It was the only thing he could think of to say, even if it sounded half-hearted. He didn't particularly know what he was sorry for, but he knew Sirius blamed him for something.

"S'okay," Sirius muttered, but suddenly he realized the situation and his eyes shot open with a start.

Lupin placed a hand on his back to keep him from bolting, and eventually Sirius relaxed again, his head resting lightly on Lupin's chest. "I'm not mad at you."

Sirius snorted. "Why not? I'm certainly mad at me."

"Don't be. But I do have to ask you why you're here."

"Because I can't sleep alone anymore. Haven't been able to since I got out of Azkaban; I have to turn into Padfoot if I want to avoid the nightmares. I wake up screaming sometimes, Remus. It's awful. The only time I didn't was that summer after Voldemort came back, when I was at your place. Because…"

"I only had one bed. Right. You still had nightmares, though," Lupin remembered, thinking about the many nights that Sirius had woken him up and he had noticed the other man whimpering and shaking in his sleep. Even if Azkaban hadn't made him crazy, that long a time with exposure to Dementors could hardly be good for anybody. It had seemed all so natural, then, to hold the other man close and stroke his hair, whispering things that he hoped were comforting and, inevitably, eventually Sirius would fall back into a restful sleep.

"I guess I can't hope to do that, anymore," Sirius smiled ruefully. "You and Tonks…"

"Sirius, don't be foolish. If it eases your nightmares, of course you can stay with me. Besides…Tonks and I rarely slept in the same bed. Half the time we didn't even live together…I was off doing something mundane to feel useful, and she was at her mother's."

"Oh, you had a happy marriage, all right."

"She was happy, Sirius. That's all that mattered."

"Sometimes, Moony, I think you worry too much about what makes other people happy and not enough about what makes _you _happy. You can't always think solely about others," Sirius raised himself up on an elbow, staring into the amber eyes of the werewolf.

"I suppose I always felt that I always had to do what others wanted, or else people wouldn't like me anymore," Lupin realized, although he supposed he had always known it. "I was so worried about people liking me…I never thought it possible, knowing what I was."

"For as smart as you are, you can sure be naïve," Sirius snorted, laying his head back down. "So I can sleep with you?"

"Yes. I thought I'd clarified that."

"Because it's what _I _want. But is it what _you _want?" Sirius looked almost afraid of the answer. "And I want the truth, Moony."

Lupin let out a sigh and closed his eyes, his hand resting lightly on Sirius' shoulder. "I like it. It feels…nice to have somebody who feels exactly the same way about me as I do about them. Somebody who loves me for who I am, and who wouldn't ever want me to compromise that. Someone who's always been there for me, even when I wasn't there for them. And that's the truth, Sirius."

"I believe you, Moony, because I- ARRGH!" Sirius let out a growl as, with a loud 'pop,' a shape Apparated onto the bed, unfortunately managing to land rather roughly on Sirius' outstretched leg. Apparently this Hogwarts was not bound by the same enchantments the actual one was.

"Sorry about that, mate. It's harder to do here than it is in the actual world," the other shrugged, not really sounding all that sorry.

Lupin stifled a laugh. He should have known that Fred Weasley would return to Hogwarts as well; after all, it was where he had pulled some of his most brilliant pranks. He felt a pang of sympathy for the rest of the large, close family, and especially for his twin brother, George, but Fred seemed to be taking this all in stride.

A closed expression flitted over Sirius' features when he realized who the intruder was, but, seeing as how he always liked to look on the positive side, he didn't ask any awkward questions. "Fred Weasley, get off of me," he glowered at the young man.

"How do you know who I…" Fred paused, looking at Sirius for the first time. "S-Sirius?"

"Do you know anyone else who looks this good?" Sirius attempted to look dignified, which was rather hard when he was sprawled out on a bed with his leg at a funny angle. Lupin snorted, trying and failing to stifle a laugh.

"But…how…" Fred stopped, because, like Sirius, he seemed to know that the 'why' didn't really matter, and Lupin supposed the last thing any of them needed to talk about was how they died at that point.

"Fred, if you would be so kind as to get off of Sirius' leg," Lupin cut in mildly. "He may not show it, but I'm sure he's rather uncomfortable." The last was a horrible understatement, because Sirius was still growling under his breath.

Fred looked up, his eyes widening. "R-Remus?"

"Alright, that's it!" And a second later, a very large, black dog was laying where Sirius had been, and he pounced on Fred and knocked him onto the floor.

"Padfoot! Down, boy!" Remus commanded, although he was finding it very hard not to laugh. He felt…happy, really happy, for the first time since he could remember.

Sirius eventually got off of Fred and turned back into a human, grinning. "Sorry, Fred."

"Oh, that's alright. I guess I just never expected to see the two of you here…wherever 'here' actually is," Fred shrugged. "But I'm going to do some more exploring; see if there's anybody I can sufficiently annoy."

"You might want to try the dungeons," Sirius told him with a secretive smile. "Trust me."

Fred nodded, looking positively ecstatic, before Disapparating with the same loud "pop."

"Glad to see dying hasn't affected his spirits much," Sirius stretched, yawning.

"Did you really have to tell him to go pick on Severus? Don't you think the poor man's been through enough?" Lupin got out of the bed.

" 'Course not, Moony. Besides, what harm can he do? But I'm feeling a bit peckish. Fancy going down to the Great Hall and finding us some food? Tea and chocolate, perhaps?" Sirius grinned, heading for the door.

"Are we _supposed _to feel hungry?"

"Who cares? There's food. And when there's food, the food has to be eaten," Sirius shrugged. "Coming?"

"Of course. And then I had hoped I could see Dumbledore."

"Naturally. I'm sure you have a lot of questions," Sirius agreed, and the two reunited friends made their way down to the Great Hall for breakfast.


	2. The Mission

**So, I'd like to thank all my reviewers…oh, wait, I never got any. And I'm sure that any of you who've read my previous stories know how much I gripe about not getting reviews. I promise I'll respond to all of them! And how do I know if it's worth it to keep posting unless **_**somebody **_**gives me feedback? **

**Anyway, here's chapter two! **

**Disclaimer: Still don't own it. Pity. **

**Chapter Two**

"So what's the password?"

"How should I know?"

"You've been talking to him all year! How did you get in the office?"

"Oh, that…well, it was mainly Lily who guessed it."

"I should have known. Well, it's usually some type of candy, right?"

"Right, but…"

Their banter was cut short by a grating noise as the stone gargoyle jumped aside to let them pass. Looking at each other, they mouthed the word, "candy?", and then shrugged and continued up into Dumbledore's office.

The first thing they noticed was that Dumbledore was deep in conversation with somebody, and so they hung back just outside the door, although Sirius was all for getting close enough to hear. After a few moments, Dumbledore paused in whatever he was saying and half-turned. "Ah, come in, boys. I'll be with you in a moment."

As they entered, they realized that Dumbledore was standing in front of an enormous picture frame that looked down into the real Hogwarts. "Albus? Who are you talking to?" They couldn't see who the new speaker was because Dumbledore was effectively blocking the frame, but there was no denying the voice: Minerva McGonagall.

"Nobody, Minerva."

"You're lying, Albus."

"My good woman, you know as well as I that random spirits can't just pop in and out of pictures all willy-nilly. Can you imagine if everyone in the sprit world turned up wherever they wanted whenever the urge struck them? It would be utter chaos!" Dumbledore exclaimed in mock-horror.

"Albus, my good man, you know as well as I that some rules are just…well…made to be broken." Lupin stifled a laugh. Was this really McGonagall talking?

"Oh, very well." Obviously Dumbledore was planning this from the beginning, as he really didn't need any convincing. "Boys, come here."

Lupin and Sirius moved into view as Dumbledore stepped aside, and they could clearly see McGonagall. Her eyes widened. "Remus? Sirius?"

"Hello, Minerva," Sirius grinned. "Long time no see."

"You look…good. Both of you," she amended. "Why is Albus still as ancient as ever?"

"Because," Dumbledore cut in. "Because, as far as we can tell, a person's soul will take on the appearance of that person during the time of their life when they were the happiest."

"I see. Well, I had best be getting back to work. There's a lot of cleaning to be done," she cast a furtive glance at Lupin. "I shall talk to you later, Albus. Sirius, Remus…it was good to see you again."

"Likewise," Lupin nodded, and a second later she had moved out of the frame and they were staring at a blank study.

"Well," Dumbledore clapped his hands. "I can't say I'm surprised to see you, after last night, so do come in and have a chair!" He waved his wand and a chair magically appeared. Lupin sat down, while Sirius hovered behind, looking unsure as to whether he was welcome. "Don't look so uncomfortable, Sirius. Of course you may stay. That is, of course, unless Mr. Lupin has any objections?"

"Of course not," Lupin replied, knowing that he would probably tell anything to Sirius anyway. "Want a chair, Pads?"

"No, I'm fine," Sirius stuck his hands in his pockets, looking for all the world like he wanted to disappear into the wall. Lupin shook his head, knowing that, for all of his friend's incessant good humour, he was still not convinced that their friendship wouldn't change. And he probably really didn't want to hear about his cousin right now, but of course, that was the first thing Lupin would have to ask.

"Albus, do you…"

"Your wife left soon after she arrived to go search for her father on the Muggle side," Dumbledore replied, the usual twinkle in his blue eyes. "Minerva has owled Andromeda, and she is most noticeably upset, of course, but she has agreed to raise your son until he is old enough to attend Hogwarts. After that, we plan on asking Harry if he will let Teddy spend the summers with him."

"Oh, good," Lupin smiled. "I had hoped that Andromeda would take him, but…I know that I wasn't her first choice for a son-in-law. Being…you know."

"And I take it that this is the other question you have for me? Because I'm afraid I don't have an answer for you," Dumbledore looked down. "You see, I have not met another…like you…here. Most agreed to serve Voldemort, and as I'm sure you have noticed, none that died on his side can mix with those who died for the other. So I'm afraid we'll just have to wait for the full moon to find out."

"Alright," Lupin smiled, but it felt rather forced. Sirius had finally stopped fidgeting, and he moved forward and gripped his friend's shoulder. "It's fine. At least I won't be alone anymore," he smiled up at Sirius.

"Yeah. Yeah, right." But he hardly sounded convinced.

"Now that that's cleared up, there's another reason I had hoped you boys would come see me…"

But whatever he was going to say was interrupted by James and Lily sprinting into the room. Or, rather, James was running at full tilt and Lily, who had his hand in hers, was hanging on for dear life. Skidding to a stop, James exclaimed, "Dumbledore! We can't leave!"

"Which is precisely why I wanted to talk to all of you. I've…"

There was a loud 'crack' and Fred Weasley appeared on the desk, grinning. "Hey, I did it!"

"As I was saying, I called…"

But everyone ignored Dumbledore as, like radar, James and Sirius' heads swivelled to take in the man who had just entered the door. "Sirius…" Lupin started, but the other man was hardly listening. So he changed his tactic. "Hello, Severus."

"Lupin," Snape nodded, the familiar sneer creeping back onto his face. "Black. Potter." The last were said without emotion. "Lily."

"It's good to see you, Severus," Lily smiled, and her smile was genuine.

"Same," Snape mumbled, suddenly finding his shoes very interesting.

"As I was saying…" they all turned back to Dumbledore. "Now that you're all here…well, most of you…there is something I have to ask of all of you. Have any of you noticed anything…different, this morning?"

"You mean, besides the fact that we can't leave?" James grumped.

"You're whining, Prongs. You know I hate it when you whine. But yes, there's usually tons of people in the school, and I haven't seen another soul this morning," Sirius commented.

"Precisely. And have any of you tried to look down on the real world?"

"Of course. We had to see Harry, but there was still a fog over everything. I thought that maybe it was just an after-effect of Voldemort and that it would clear up," Lily shrugged.

"You're correct about that, Lily. At least, somewhat. Voldemort, you see, knew something of the afterlife. And he, in true Dark Lord fashion, wanted not only to control the living, but also the dead. So he created something; I've never been able to fathom what; that, when his soul was destroyed, sealed the afterlife, as it were. In other words, we are trapped where we were at the moment he died," Dumbledore finished.

"But we can get out, right? We can fix it?" James looked anxious.

"Yes, I believe it is…fixable. But it is also extremely dangerous for, as Voldemort has proven, even souls can be destroyed with the right weapons. If…and only if…you are prepared to risk disappearing forever in order to make this place what it once was, I have a mission for all of you," he crossed his arms looking expectant. "But before I ask you this, I should tell you what the mission is.

"From what I can tell, Voldemort contained the power to seal the afterlife within two different souls, as it is much too big a task for one. The first person he entitled this power to was his most loyal follower; perhaps the only person he ever truly trusted," Dumbledore explained gravely.

"Bellatrix," Sirius growled.

"Correct."

"So who killed her? I dearly would have liked to finish her off," Sirius grinned evilly.

"Why, Molly Weasley, of course."

"What? Mom?' Fred's eyes were wide. "That's…wow."

"Indeed. I hardly thought her capable of it myself, but it seemed that Bellatrix was getting too mouthy for her own good," Dumbledore smiled knowingly. Sirius was looking rather smug. Dumbledore cleared his throat and continued, "The second…well, I think that he just set it up so whomever the first of his followers to die after him would control the other part of the spell."

"And who was that?" Lupin asked.

"Well, perhaps I should let you read it for yourself," Dumbledore waved his hand and a copy of the Daily Prophet appeared, which he pushed across the desk to Lupin. As he began reading, Dumbledore nonetheless began to explain to the others what had occurred. "Last night, of course, the Ministry sent in Aurors to round up all of the Death Eaters who had surrendered at Hogwarts. As predicted, many of them did not want to come quietly, and one decided that it would be a good idea to try and attack- physically- some of the Aurors trying to arrest him. Needless to say, several spells were fired, and the combination of too many different kinds caused heart failure in the individual. Since this morning is when I first realized nobody could leave the place they are, I can only assume that with his death, Voldemort's final curse has been realized. However, I think that this also proves that Voldemort did not have complete control over the spell, for if he did, he would have applied it to Death Eaters only, and it was well-known that he did not trust this man, given the…nature of his condition," he concluded gravely, looking at each occupant of the room in turn.

"But who was it?" James asked.

"Fenrir." Lupin tossed the paper back onto the desk. The topic was obviously a sore spot, so nobody asked him for more detail, and instead Lily inquired, "But if we have to…destroy…these souls in order to reverse the spell, how can it be done? From what you told us last year, it has to be something incredibly rare and powerful, and we don't have the Sword of Gryffindor or a basilisk fang or anything."

"There is one other thing that can destroy a soul…" Dumbledore started, his eyes darting to Snape.

"Fiendfyre," Snape replied tonelessly. "It's very dark magic, but it can effectively get the job done. A simple spell, really, but very few know how to produce it, and fewer still know how to control it."

"But you know how?" Lily asked.

"I do."

"That still leaves us the problem of destroying souls," Fred pointed out. "I mean, it seems a little harsh, doesn't it?"

"Not for Bellatrix," Sirius replied. "That woman tortured Frank and Alice Longbottom. She killed my cousin. It's because of her that I'm dead, and who knows how many other people have suffered because of her and her deranged adoration for Voldemort!" He was practically shaking.

"Alright. But what about Fenrir? I've heard the name, but I don't know…" James looked at Lupin.

"It's alright. Fenrir Greyback is one of the reasons why my kind are so hated and feared among Wizards and Muggles alike. He purposely positioned himself close to children so he could bite them and was planning on breeding an army of werewolves to work for Voldemort. It was…" he paused, looking unsure. "It's because of him that I am what I am." He could feel Sirius' hand on his shoulder tighten sympathetically. "I guess you could say that I owe him."

"In other words, we'll be happy to take them on." Lupin could tell that Sirius had a grim smile on his face.

"Excellent! But I must warn you: in all likelihood, Bellatrix also has knowledge of how to produce Fiendfyre, and I have no doubt that they will want to rid the spirit world of you all as much as you do of them," Dumbledore returned. "But you all have talents that will be most useful. There is…a way, so I hear, out of the castle that will take you to the part of this realm where those who swore themselves to the Dark Arts dwell, but I cannot say where it is, and I fear that there is much to do to prepare Hogwarts for next year, so I shall be quite busy. But I have no doubt that you are all capable of it yourselves."

As Dumbledore finished, there was the unmistakable feeling that somebody…else was now in the room with them. As one, they turned to the door, where a boy no older than about seventeen in this life was staring back at them. He had long dark hair and dark blue eyes, and he was undoubtedly related to Sirius. Attractive enough in his own way, but paltry compared to his brother.

"Regulus." It came out as a sort of half-hiss, half-growl.

"Brother." In the same scornful tone.

"Now, boys, this is not the time to start some old family feud. I know the two of you did not like each other in life, but the fact is that Regulus sacrificed his own life in order to remove one of the Horcruxes without Voldemort knowing. Needless to say, much could have been avoided had I known of this, but the fact remains that he is on our side," Dumbledore replied.

"Fine," Sirius tossed his head and refused to look at his brother, who was currently glaring daggers at his older sibling. "When do we start?"

"Why, as soon as possible, of course. It's a great inconvenience, as I'm sure most of you have noticed, to be stuck in one place. But I've kept you all long enough. Good luck," Dumbledore smiled with the usual twinkle in his eye as the others traipsed out of the office, knowing that, if they found a way to overcome past hostilities, there was no better team he could have put to the task.


	3. Friends Old and New

**Well, I got two alerts…that's good, I guess…still no reviews…make my day and review, pretty please? It feeds my muse…although I haven't quite figured out who or what my muse **_**is **_**yet. Oh, well. **

**Anyway, here's chapter three. I know people are reading this, so if you are, it only takes a second to press that little button and drop me a word or two:)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own it. **

**Chapter Three**

It felt good to be back in his old office…granted, he had only been the owner of it for a year, but it still felt…right. And that year had certainly been one of the best years of his life, at least since the Halloween incident of 1981. After all, he had gotten to spend a lot of time with Lily and James' son, and they had learned that Sirius wasn't a crazy murderer. Of course, that also had proved that Peter was a lying rat, but the pros definitely outweighed the cons in his mind.

As he sat at the desk reading through some old books he had taken from the library, he heard somebody moving up the stairs, and was mildly surprised to see Severus Snape standing in the doorway.

"Ah, Severus!" he greeted in the mild tone he always used for the man. "What brings you here?"

"Lupin." Toneless as ever. "I merely came to ask you whether you would like me to make a certain potion for you as a certain event comes nearer."

"Would you mind terribly? I fear, as of this point, that we have no idea whether or not my furry little problem will arise, and I think it would be wise to be safe," Lupin replied with a smile.

"Of course not. It will give me something to do, besides looking for this secret exit out of the castle. I have personally scoured the dungeons, and I can find nothing that even looks remotely like a passage," Snape replied.

"I am sure something will occur to us," Lupin shrugged.

"May I ask you something?"

Lupin lowered his book in surprise. Since when did Snape ask permission to do anything? "Of course."

"Why are you friends with those…those…" Snape looked like he was thinking up a particularly nasty word and could not quite articulate it the way he wanted to. "You know. They're not what you would call 'good people.'"

"Of course they are." Lupin put the book back on the desk. "They did not abandon me when everyone else in the wizarding world considered me a freak. They even went so far as to ensure that my transformations were less painful than normal, all at great risk to their own safety. They have flaws, to be sure, but then we all do. No, as far as I am concerned, Severus, they are _very _good people."

"And why are you always so infuriatingly civil to me?"

"Why not? I have- had- no reason to hate you for anything. James and Sirius were often out of line; and I fear that is partly my fault for I was often too scared to contradict them, even as a Prefect, but I never had any reason to hate you. I must admit, however, that if, in the past year, the two of us had met face-to-face you would not have found me to be quite so accommodating," Lupin responded with a grim smile.

"That would be understandable," Snape replied. "Of course, it was all carefully planned, but I must admit that not everything went according to those plans. Mr. Weasley's ear, I fear, was an unfortunate casualty." As with most of what Snape said, it was impossible to tell from his tone whether or not he was trying to be witty.

"Yes, that night in particular, after I knew it was you, I was feeling particularly angry," Lupin admitted. "Of course, there was no doubt in my mind even before your hood fell off. _Sectumsempra _was always your specialty."

"Indeed. In reality, I was aiming at the fool in front of me who decided it would be a good idea to aim a killing curse at you, but I fear my aim was badly skewed…must have been a stray gust of wind," he shrugged.

"You were trying to save me?"

"Yes. Believe it or not, I never harboured quite as much disdain for you as I had led you to believe."

Lupin nodded thoughtfully. Apparently Snape had been living a lie for nearly eighteen years…and he was a very convincing actor. And while the man underneath may not have been an angel, he certainly wasn't who he appeared to be. "Well, you had all of us fooled."

"So it seems. Although I suppose I should get back to looking for this supposed exit if we want to accomplish anything," he turned around in a flurry of black robes.

"Thank you, Severus. For the potion," Lupin called.

Snape turned back for a moment then, and said, as if it were costing a great effort, "You're welcome…Remus." Then he was gone.

Smiling to himself, Lupin was just about to pick up his book again when there was a timid knock on the doorframe. "Moony? Can I talk to you?"

Glancing up, Lupin was once again startled by the resemblance. If the visitor had said, "Professor Lupin" in place of "Moony," it could very well have been Harry Potter coming to ask his teacher a question during his third year of school. As it was, the visitor was James, but everything from the way he stood to the way his voice sounded was exceedingly familiar to Lupin.

"When have I ever refused your company, Prongs?"

"It's been a long time."

"Far too long, as far as I'm concerned."

He nodded and moved cautiously into the room, stopping when he was on the other side of the desk from Lupin. "It's…about Sirius."

"What about him?"

"He seems…unsettled. And it's only since you came back. He won't talk to me about it, but I thought that you might know what was wrong."

"I do, unfortunately. Sirius seems to think that because I am married our friendship will change or suffer in some way. He's completely wrong, I assure you, but I think he feels even worse because Dora is his cousin. At any rate, I've tried to convince him otherwise, but I think I've done all I can do."

"You always meant a lot to him, you know. Ever since Lily and I married, I think he always depended on you because I could not be there as often as I was before. And after he fell through the veil…he worried about you; because your life has been far from easy. But I guess we've all changed, in our ways," James sat down in a nearby chair. "Tell me about Harry. What's he like…after all, you taught him."

"Harry is…brilliant, James. Much like you and Lily. He's inherited both of your brains, that's for sure, and he likes a good prank…very like his father, I might add. He's tremendous on the Quidditch pitch; flies almost exactly as you did. He's got two amazing best friends who would do anything for him, and..." Lupin paused. "Sometimes it hurt to be with him, because he reminded me of you. I know Sirius felt that way, too. I wished I could have been more to him at times…I know he came to trust me during that year I taught him, and that he thought of me as a friend, but the poor boy never grew up in a loving environment. He clung to Sirius like he was some sort of link to the family he never had, and his death hit Harry harder than any of us, I think. But surely you've seen most of this already."

"Bits and pieces. I can't watch him constantly, you know. But I saw…parts of what took place between the two of you at Hogwarts, and I agree with Sirius. I think he really did love you…more as a mentor than Sirius; from what I gather, Sirius acted more like a brother than a godfather; but I couldn't have asked more from you. You gave him what I never could, what even Sirius couldn't, and that's why you're one of my best friends," James smiled sincerely.

"Thank you, Prongs. That means a lot. And, if it's worth anything, I loved him as well. I too would have done anything for him, I think," Lupin admitted.

"I know. I'm glad I had friends like you to look after him even when I couldn't. But enough of that; being all sentimental and whatnot. Any ideas on where to find this secret passage?" James asked.

"The first place I thought of was…"

"The Room of Requirement. Me, too. But I swear, I walked by that wall fifty times thinking, 'I need a way out of the castle' and nothing happened," James shrugged. "Maybe it doesn't exist in this world."

"In that case, I think the only thing to do is to start at the bottom and work our way up. Severus has already checked the dungeons, and I daresay that all of the secret passages in this school are known to us, so we're bound to find a clue somewhere," Lupin smiled. "Where are you and Lily staying?"

"Well, I assumed that you and Sirius were in our old room, so Lily suggested that we take the girl's dorm. It felt kind of awkward at first…you know, but she pointed out that it would have been the same for her had we stayed in the boy's. Anyway, I guess I can live with it as long as no other girls show up, and that's not likely at this point. So you think Sirius will come around?" James asked, bringing back the original topic.

"One can only hope. I haven't explained it to him, yet, but there's no guarantee that Tonks will be the same anymore. I mean, from what Dumbledore has said, we come into this world taking the appearance of who we were at the happiest time in our lives. What if the happiest time in her life wasn't now? What if she comes back as a child? We can't possibly expect to have a relationship, then! Of course, if she did come back as she was presently, we would be close to the same age, but the point is that I don't know, and I'm not going to worry myself sick over it because I can't control it," Lupin stated firmly.

"Wow. I never thought of it that way, but…you're right. I guess it was lucky for both Lily and I that we chose the same moment in life."

"Was there ever any other choice, for the two of you? You spent half your time griping at each other even though to anyone watching it was obvious that she liked you. She didn't go about showing it in the way you did, but there was always a smile on her face even when she was rebuking you," Lupin pointed out with a smile.

"Moony! Why didn't any of you tell _me _this? We could have gotten together ages sooner!" James jumped out of his seat, glaring.

Lupin held up his hands to ward off the other man, but he was laughing. "You were too blinded by anything but Lily to even listen to us some days. And besides, you considered it a challenge; she had bruised your ego. No mortal could look upon James Potter and not be awed by his awesome presence."

"You're being sarcastic again."

"Of course. That's my job; to bring you back down to earth because otherwise you would be constantly floating above the rest of us," Lupin grinned, glad to find that, even after seventeen years, it was still remarkable easy to banter with his old friend.

"I've missed you, Moony."

"I've missed you too, Prongs."

"You know, if it were Sirius, we would have been hugging long before this point," James shook his head.

"Be thankful I'm not; I don't think any of us could live with two of him," Lupin countered before the two old friends embraced. "Of course, it would make for an interesting situation…"

"_No_. He's enough trouble at the moment as it is. Oh, but what about that Weasley boy? He seems to be following in the footsteps of the Marauders rather well, doesn't he?" James asked.

"Well enough. I suppose we could always induct him as an 'honorary Marauder.' After all, four is a better number than three."

"Well, you have my permission. I have a feeling he'd like that. I never knew Arthur and Molly well, but they seemed to be really nice people, and I know I've met practically all of their children…probably saw Fred and his brother as babies, but that seems so long ago now. We are getting old, aren't we?"

"Not as old as you'd think. Now Dumbledore, _he's _old," Lupin closed the book he had been perusing and set it back on the desk.

"Can you imagine if he'd come back _young? _I don't think I could take him seriously."

"It would be strange, that's true. So…where do we start?" They had exited the room and were looking down the corridor.

"The entrance and the Great Hall, I guess. If Sniv…" James stopped as Lupin shot him a glare. "…Severus has checked the dungeons, there's no need for us to go there. Pads and I can check the second floor if you and Lily want to do the first…after all, I'm sure the two of you have some catching up to do. I think she was happy when you showed up; Sirius and I were starting to drive her crazy, and you always _were _the voice of reason."

"That'd be fine. And maybe you can talk to Sirius about the whole situation; he always tended to listen better to you."

"That's because I was rarely serious, so when I was he knew it was important," James shrugged. "But sure, I'll try to bring him 'round. Shouldn't be too hard."

"Thank you." They made their way down the stairs to the Entrance Hall, where Lily and Sirius were sitting on the stairs. After James explained their plan, they decided to start looking.


	4. Three Conversations

**Yay, one review! Thank you so much, and I realize that there is a lot of dialogue, but I've been told by many that it's my strong point. There **_**will **_**be some action later on in the story, but for now it's all tying up of loose ends and such. But thanks for the review! **

**And to everyone else, don't be afraid to leave me one. Really, I won't bite. **

**Disclaimer: Not mine**

**Chapter Four**

"Well, I'm lost!" Lily exclaimed after a thorough search of the Great Hall had been completed. She perched herself on one edge of the teacher's table and glared at the room as if it could make an entrance appear.

"I'm sure it's very simple; we just haven't thought of it, yet," Lupin assured her, seating himself in the chair he had used during his time at Hogwarts.

"How weird was it, Remus? Being a teacher and all when the last time you were in Hogwarts it was as a student?" She turned around to face him, an easy smile on her face.

"Strange enough. I tended to call most of my old teachers 'Professor' still, even when they assured me I could use their first names. And I always felt like I was breaking some rule; sitting at this table. I enjoyed it immensely, of course; one of the best years of my life after what happened in '81, but that didn't stop it from feeling odd," he admitted.

"You would have made an excellent teacher. Far better than I could have ever done. You're so…calm, all the time. Granted, I've seen you angry, and it's frightening, but I think the fact that you rarely are makes it more so. I'd make a horrible teacher; you know how short my temper is. James would hardly say anything to me back in school and I would be yelling my head off at him," she grinned at the memory.

"Yes, but James was insufferable. And I doubt he's changed."

"Not in the least. Maybe fatherhood would have deflated his ego a bit, but since that never happened, he's still the same old James." She swung her legs as she sat, looking a little awed to be sitting where the teachers did and not getting reprimanded for it. Of course, Lily Evans-Potter never did anything to _deserve _reprimand, but that didn't stop her from casting guilty looks around as if somebody was going to start yelling at her. "So, how is the world getting on? I mean, with lycanthropy," she clarified.

"Not well. Finding a job was nigh on impossible, and especially because it was well-known that werewolves had been in league with Voldemort, and were keen on his return. Of course, Voldemort despised werewolves; would have eliminated them without a second thought, but they were useful…and expendable, of course. I spend the better part of half a year living with them; they have colonies underground, you see, and it's a horrible place. Almost as if being thought of as little more than animals has literally turned them _into _animals. They had no self-respect, and trying to convince them that there was a place for them in the world was a lost cause," Lupin shook his head. "Perhaps one day we will be looked at as equals, but I don't see it happening anytime soon."

"People are so afraid of what they don't understand," Lily shook her head ruefully. "I mean, I knew you for the longest time before I found out about your condition, and you were the nicest person anybody could ever ask to meet. After all, it's not like being a werewolf changed who you are as a person. I'm sure there are good and bad werewolves just as there are good and bad people. It's really not fair to judge based on one thing."

"I know, Lily, and I'm grateful that, at least, there are people who agree with me. That gives me hope that someday more people will see it like we do." Lupin got out of his chair and made his way across the Hall, gazing up at the ceiling which at the moment was obscured by the same fog that seemed to cover everything outside of the castle. "I wonder how James and Sirius are making out?"

"The two of them? They probably haven't even started looking, yet. But we still have to check the portrait room and the Transfiguration classroom," Lily reminded him.

"And the staff room."

"Right. I've never been in there."

"I know. It's nothing special, believe me. The greatest thing they have in there is a self-refilling coffee maker," Lupin smiled.

"Sounds good. I could use some coffee," Lily admitted with a wink, and the two left the Great Hall.

000

"Nothing. Abso-bloody-lutely nothing." Sirius let out a sigh and sank down in a chair in what would have been the Charms classroom.

"We still have five floors to go, mate, plus the towers. We'll find something," James was still poking around the classroom, investigating everything even if it was no more than a speck of dust. "It's got to be obvious; we're just not seeing it."

"Even if it _is _obvious, Prongs, how long will it take to find it? We could be looking for ages!" Sirius exclaimed, leaning back in the chair and putting his feet up on a desk.

"You're a fat lot of help, by the way. Ever consider actually getting off your rear and helping me look?"

"Nah. Too much work."

"You have to stop the act, Pads. I can see something's wrong; I know you too well for that, so quit playing." James said this all casually, but he could sense Sirius stiffen behind him.

"P-playing, Jamie? About what?"

"You and Moony. So he got married; so what? Who cares if it's your cousin? You know, she might have come to this world as a child; who really knows?"

"Well, she _was _always happy as a child. But that's not the point, Prongs! I knew him; thought I knew him, anyway. And the Remus Lupin I loved like a brother was not the type to get married and have children with a woman more than a decade younger; he wasn't the type to make careless decisions that could have endangered others. That's what's bothering me the most," Sirius admitted. "I always thought that we were the most important people in each other's lives, and now he goes and does this…it hurts, Prongs, and I can't begin to even fathom why it happened, but…" Sirius trailed off helplessly.

"Padfoot, mate, it's probably not like that at all. Remus would never have wanted to put anybody in danger, but he's too passive for his own good. You know that probably better than anybody. If your cousin was in love with him; and he's not a hard man to fall in love with, I don't think; then don't you think he might have done it just because it made her happy, and he didn't want to disappoint her?" James queried.

"I asked him almost the very same question, and he sort of admitted that that may have been the case, but that's no excuse for getting her pregnant!" Sirius sputtered indignantly.

"Maybe she wanted a child. Moony's been so used to following what other tell him is good for him; he had to, in order to protect himself from being exposed and to protect others from encountering him as a werewolf, that I think people telling him the relationship was a good thing probably had a very strong effect on him. I don't doubt that he loved her; maybe not in the same way she seemed to love him; but he would never lie to somebody like that. I think that maybe you're obsessing over something that's really very trivial. You've known the man for twenty-five years, Sirius. If you don't feel you understand him by now, what chance do you have?" James unceremoniously shoved Sirius' feet off of the desk and sat where they had been, leaning down to stare into his friend's eyes.

"I…you're right, James. It'll take some getting used to, that's all."

"But you promise not to be all weird and uncomfortable around him?" James leaned forward even more, so that their faces were inches apart.

"Solemnly swear," Sirius held up his hand with a smile, and James pulled back.

"It's getting late, though. We should get some sleep." James headed for the door, and after a few moments, Sirius followed.

000

The top of the astronomy tower was one of the greatest places in Hogwarts to view the schoolyard and the countryside, and even shrouded in fog, it was a magical place. Every once in a while the fog would lift enough that small patches of night sky and stars poked through, and the pale moonlight gave everything an almost unreal appearance. Of course, there was no guarantee that any of this truly existed, but the whole world seemed solid and believable enough. That wasn't something one usually thought about; where souls go when the body dies; or at least he had never thought about how the place would look. Hearing footsteps on the stairs below, he turned around, the moonlight casting eerie shadows about the parapets. He loved the moon, ironic as that may have sounded. Except on _those _nights, of course, but in the moonlight everything always seemed softer and more ethereal than in bright sunlight.

"Knew I'd find you here."

"Of course. How many nights did we sneak off together to go stargazing?"

"Too many to count." There was a pause. "Moony, I'm sorry. For acting like you were a different person than the man I knew. You're not, and it took getting some sense talked into me, but I've been a fool about a lot of things in my life."

"No, Pads. You were never a fool. Sometimes I think you were a tad easily influenced; your temper tended to be shorter than was good for you at times, but you were never a fool."

"I wish I could have been there. The final battle, I mean. I always felt that I left the world too soon to be of any use to anybody. I was careless; I knew what that archway was, but I still stood close enough to it that Bellatrix's spell pushed me back," he admitted, sounding like it was costing him a great effort to do so. After all, Sirius Black did not show weakness.

"It's not your fault; you were trying to protect Harry. Had I been where you were, I no doubt would have done the same."

"No, you wouldn't have. You would have realized where you were standing and moved, because you're careful like that. I'm the reckless one."

"Sirius, I've done plenty of reckless things; things I've regretted; in my life. I'm hardly perfect, but I've never pretended to be. I'm just…me. Remus Lupin. And that's all I can be," Lupin shrugged, hoping that James had gotten through to Sirius, for he knew they had talked. Why else would Sirius have a sudden change of heart?

"I know, Moony, and you still haven't said if you've forgiven me…"

"Of course I forgive you. Do you even have to wonder about that?" Lupin smiled. "It's good to spend some time with you again, Padfoot. Remember all those talks we had during Harry's fifth year?"

"Yes, because you were the only one who cared enough to visit me. But it was good having somebody who related to talk to; there were a lot of ghosts that needed to be put to rest. Still are, I guess, because the nightmares haven't gone away," Sirius admitted, shivering a little even though the night was far from cold.

"Shall we go to bed, then? It's getting late, and we'll have full days until we can figure out this mystery Dumbledore's set for us." Lupin stood up, heading for the door leading off of the balcony.

"Sure. Right." Sirius yawned, realizing that although sleep wasn't something he needed to exist at this point, not getting much because of the persistent nightmares tended to make him weary all the same. There were some topics the two of them had always avoided, he realized, as much as they had talked about the past. He thought that it was probably because Remus wanted to avoid talking about anything to do with Azkaban, but they needed saying. "You know, Moony, we've never really talked about what happened before and after I got arrested."

Lupin froze. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, I thought you were the traitor and you thought I was, and we've never really touched on why."

"Well, Padfoot, I thought the 'why' was obvious. Peter planned it so well that you were the only one who could have been the traitor. And laughing your head off in the middle of the street didn't help. It hurt a lot because I had always considered myself and good judge of character, and you were like the brother I never had. Peter was always different; he was a follower, and as much as we were friends, I doubt I could ever have trusted him with my life. He just…and forgive the wolf reference…_smelled _wrong. But I'm glad that you weren't; it shows that my instincts aren't getting dull," Lupin smiled. "And you?"

"It sounds so stupid to say it, but I guess I never thought Peter _capable _of doing something so crafty and sinister. I never wanted to suspect you; had no reason to, in fact, but who else was left? And I had heard rumours that many werewolves were joining Voldemort's cause because he promised them equality. Not that I ever thought you were foolish enough to believe that but…you were the only one left. I had to be safe, and I ended up making the worst mistake of my life." They had reached the common room, and Lupin turned to his friend with a sad smile on his face.

"Don't dwell on it, Padfoot. We've both made mistakes, but that doesn't mean we can't try to correct them. What happened during those couple of years was confusing and frustrating to say the least, but Lily and James harbour no grudges toward you for persuading them to change their secret-keeper, so I see no reason why I should. That night was one of the hardest of my life; hearing that two of my best friends were dead. And then to hear that Peter was dead too and that you were the murderer…I thought that the whole world had gone mad. Everyone who had meant anything to me was gone in the space of a few days, and I was left alone.

"I lost you twice, Sirius. You were dead to me when you went to Azkaban, and we had barely had time to get reacquainted when you died again…for real. Maybe I did lose some of my sanity after that; I don't know. The wolf seemed to be closer to the surface than ever for the past two years, and I retreated into myself; became the person I was before I knew that anyone cared for me. Ask anybody who knew me; I wasn't myself in the past year," he confessed.

"I didn't know I meant that much to you, Moony. I'm flattered," Sirius mock-bowed, which caused Lupin to swat his shoulder playfully.

"Stop it. Of course you meant a lot to me; you knew that perfectly well. But I'm getting all sentimental again; must be over-tired. Let's get some rest." He started up the stairs to the dormitory and pulled himself wearily into the bed. Moments later, a big black dog bounded up beside him, worming his way under the covers and transforming back into a human. At least the bed was considerably bigger than it had been when they were actually staying at Hogwarts; two men in a single bed would have been more than uncomfortable, no matter how well they knew each other. " 'Night, Padfoot. Sleep well."

"G'night, Moony." Sirius replied sleepily, and soon the two dropped off to sleep.


	5. Making Progress

**Yay, one more review and one more alert. But thank you to my (two) reviewers! This chapter kind of starts their mission-quest-thing, and it ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, so I hope you all enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: Not mine. **

**Chapter Five**

"Oh, get up already!"

James was clearly frustrated, Lupin thought with a wry smile. Of course, he had been badgering them for about fifteen minutes, and it was only a matter of time before he decided a hex was in order to get the two very reluctant men out of bed. Lupin tightened his fingers on his wand, his smile widening. Let him try. Then he'll see that Lupin had learned a thing or two in the years they had been apart. Like using spells without speaking.

"Get up or you don't get any food."

This caused Sirius to let out a very dog-like growl, but he didn't move to get up. Besides, they could have all the food they wanted, so it wasn't a very good threat.

"I'm counting to three."

Soon, then.

"One…two…three…_Augua…"_

The spell was but off by a stream of sputtering from a now very wet James Potter. Lupin snapped his amber eyes open and sat up, grinning. "You look a little wet there, Prongs. Is everything okay?"

"I…I…" James stammered, then hung his head in defeat. "I never could do that."

"No, and spraying your best friends with water isn't the greatest way to wake them up, either. At least if you don't want to be hexed," Sirius added.

"You two are impossible." James let out a sigh and started to walk out. "I'm going to get Lily to dry me off…if I try I'll likely set myself on fire or something."

"I could do it for you, if you want," Lupin offered, blinking innocently.

"You'll set me on fire on purpose."

"Never. Only Pads would be so cruel."

"Yeah, I probably would," Sirius grinned, hopping out of the bed. "I'm starved. Coming, Moony?"

"Of course."

As they entered the Great Hall, they found Fred at one of the tables, devouring what seemed to be a very large plate of eggs, pancakes, and bacon.

"Hey, Fred, you save any of that for us?" Sirius called. That was met by a very grumpy, "Get your own food!"

"Just kidding, mate," Sirius slid onto the bench, where an equally large plate of breakfast appeared on the table in front of him.

"How you can eat so much this soon after you wake up…"

"You're weird, Moony. I've always said it, and I'll say it again. Plain abnormal."

"Right." Lupin took a sip of his tea; the only thing that had appeared for him. "Maybe some of us have never lost their overly high metabolism, but I for one have no desire to stuff myself silly."

"Ingrate," Sirius muttered around a mouthful of food.

"You know, I've wondered where this comes from," Fred spoke up suddenly. "I mean, I haven't seen any house-elves around, so is the food just magic? After all Gamp's Laws of Transfiguration say food is the one thing that can't be created."

"Lots of things don't make sense here, but I for one will not complain about the food," Sirius replied.

"But what about the kitchens, then? Do they exist?" Fred asked thoughtfully as large bowls filled with strawberries and whipped cream materialized.

Lupin, who was about to have some more tea, put down his cup with a loud 'clank.' "Fred Weasley, you're a genius!" He exclaimed.

"He is?"

"I am?"

"Yes, of course you are! I've been an idiot. Sirius…if the kitchen _isn't _being used to make food, then what's its purpose?"

"Doesn't have one." Stated as if it were the most obvious answer possible.

"Exactly. And if it doesn't have one…"

"Wait!" Sirius looked up, startled. "You mean…the passage?"

"Sure seems like it."

"Well let's go find out!" And with that he had torn out of the Great Hall like a whole herd of Dementors was chasing him.

"Didn't even finish his breakfast," Fred shook his head ruefully. Lupin stared at the tablecloth for a minute until a bar of chocolate appeared, and then he grabbed it and tucked it into his pocket. Fred shot him a questioning glance.

"What? Always a good idea to have chocolate," Lupin shrugged, before the two got up to follow Sirius to the kitchen.

000

"Took you long enough." Sirius didn't even turn as Lupin and Fred joined him at the portrait of the giant fruit bowl. "Where are the others?"

"Should be here soon," Fred shrugged. After Sirius had so madly dashed off, the two of them had decided to scour the castle for the other members of their little party. If this truly was the way out, it was probably best for them all to take it together. The sound of hooves on the stone floor announced the arrival of James; the stag running at full tilt with Lily clinging onto his back. Skidding to a stop, Lily slid off as James changed back into a human. Moments later, Snape and Regulus appeared coming from different directions.

"I still don't see _why _I have to come along," Regulus sulked.

"Because, baby brother, _you _were a Death Eater…who died before the other Death Eaters knew you had betrayed them. In other words, you're not in any real danger. And the same goes for Snivellus; nobody but Dumbledore knew he was a double agent. The rest of our names might as well be 'mud' as far as they're concerned, but you at least can talk to them without getting your pants hexed off," Sirius finished with a sardonic grin.

"Pads, do you _know _of any spells that can hex pants off?" James asked with a grin.

"Maybe. But I'm not teaching them to you," Sirius countered.

"In addition to that, Severus is the only one of us who knows how to produce Fiendfyre," Lily added, smiling at Snape, whose mouth twitched in a semblance of a return smile.

"Well, I figured he had to be good for _some_thing…"

"Sirius…"

"I'm just teasing, Remus!"

"Look," Lupin glanced around at the people in the hallway. "I know that all of us may not know each other well, or if we do, we may not have always gotten along, but we're all on the same side now. No, Sirius, don't interrupt me," he glared at the dark-haired man, who shrugged. "I want us all to work together as best we can and not let petty arguments or insults wreck our chance of succeeding. Because if we fail, there's no second chances. If we're destroyed this time, we're gone forever. And I know that none of us want that to happen. Are we agreed?"

Lily and Fred nodded right away. James and Sirius were involved in a staring match with Snape that only meant one thing: I will if he does. Regulus let out a sigh and jerked his head up. "Fine."

"Alright. Now I don't know what's behind this picture, or what dangers we'll have to face, but we're all going to be there for each other, and we're all going to come out alright on the other side. So let's go." Lupin lifted a hand to tickle the pear in the fruit bowl, and the picture moved aside, revealing a pitch-black tunnel.

"And when exactly did you become a motivational speaker?" Sirius asked, although there was a quavering tone to his voice that showed he was more nervous than he was letting on.

"I was a teacher, in case you didn't remember," Lupin replied, trying to cover up his own anxiety with a smile.

"By the way," Lily put in, "who thought of the kitchens anyhow?"

"Fred."

"So he _does _have a brain," Snape sneered.

"Of course. He and his brother did very well in my class…after we had come to an understanding," Lupin replied mysteriously.

"Oh, that," Fred airily waved a hand. "That was only because you managed to stop all our pranks before they even started. You were the only teacher we ever thought of as an equal. There were some classes, like McGonagall's, where we were never pulled pranks, but that was because we were afraid of her," he grinned.

"And you weren't afraid of me?" Snape's eyes glittered maliciously. "As I recall, Mr. Weasley, I threatened expulsion a number of times."

"But you never caught us," Fred said cheekily. "Remus here seemed to always be one step ahead of whatever we were planning."

"It helped that most of what you tried to pull had been tried by the Marauders years before. And you could never sneak into class because I knew where all the passages were. You just have to beat them at their own game, Severus," Lupin said mildly.

"Well excuse me if I didn't spend my Hogwarts career gallivanting about and, as Mr. Black so eloquently put it, 'hexing the pants off of people.'"

Lupin glanced at Snape with interest. His last comment hadn't been sarcastic; rather, it would have been what Sirius classified as 'witty banter,' if Snape of course were capable of 'witty banter.' Maybe the man _was _changing.

"Can we get on with it?" Regulus was clearly sulking again. Apparently Sirius had inherited all the good nature in the family.

"Right," Lupin turned back to the opening. One by one, they stepped into the passage, following it a remarkable short distance before it emerged into what looked like a store…a very dingy, old store, filled with items that were unmistakeably of a dark nature. "Where are we?"

"Knockturn Alley," Sirius gazed around apprehensively. "I'd know this place anywhere; my parents took me here often enough as a child."

"And little Siri was always scared of monsters," Regulus grinned.

"Shut up. That's not true and you know it," Sirius growled. "After all, if I'm afraid of monsters why am I friends with a _werewolf?_"

Regulus shrugged. "You're just too proud to admit that you have weaknesses."

"You've been dead for too long to know that I _have _been admitting them. I relive them every night thanks to those twelve years I spent in Azkaban," Sirius shuddered. "That won't ever go away."

Regulus looked like he was about to make another scathing comment, but the words died in his throat and a strange sort of pity entered his eyes. He knew about Azkaban, of course. Had been following his brother for years from above, although he would never admit that to Sirius. But watching somebody and being inside their head were two very different things, as he himself knew only too well. "Right. Sorry," he finally forced out, glancing anywhere but at his brother.

"So what now?" James asked, glancing about the dark shop.

"We split up," Lupin replied.

"What happened to 'we're all in this together?'" Fred asked.

"It's a lot less conspicuous for groups of two or three to wander about than it is for seven," Lupin replied. "And as long as we agree on a meeting time and a signal in case anyone gets in trouble, it shouldn't really be a problem."

"Red sparks," Snape put in. "If we're in danger; that was always the signal we used at Hogwarts."

"Good enough. Okay…Sirius, since you know this place, you can come with me. Something about this is making my hackles rise." Sirius looked at him and grinned weakly at the animal analogy. "Severus…"

"I'll go with him," Lily smiled. "That way, we won't spend half our time fighting."

"Fair enough," Snape kept his icy demeanour, but it was evident he was happy with his partner. "I know Knockturn Alley as well as anyone else."

"Right. Which leaves you three," Lupin turned to James, Fred and Regulus. "I know you don't know each other very well, but that probably means you won't be tempted to get into too many fights. How long should we take?"

"Two hours?" Lily suggested. "And then we can go out again if we don't find anything."

"Alright." James, for one, was obviously not happy with his wife being with Snape, but he had no desire to start anything now. That, however, did not stop him from shooting a warning glance at the other man; a glance that Snape pretended not to notice.

000

"Hate this place. Hate it, hate it, hate it," Sirius was practically vibrating.

"I don't like it any more than you, Pads, but we have to…" Pushing open the door to another dingy store, he froze as his foot passed the threshold.

"What? What is it?"

"Don't you feel it?" Lupin backed up.

"No; what?" Sirius stepped through, looking around with trepidation, until his eyes landed on something that made him curse softly. "Moony…"

"I know." Lupin took a deep breath and walked through the door, moving over to a cabinet displaying knives. Silver knives. Behind him was a bookcase with several old volumes describing in detail how to slay dark creatures. "I knew Dark wizards wanted nothing to do with us, but I never thought…I mean…"

"Remus." Sirius' tone was gentle. "Let's just go; there's nothing here." He was clearly appalled.

"No, it's fine. I've lived my whole life being shunned and avoided for who I am; why should it be any different in death?" There was no regret in his tone; he had long ago accepted the fact that he would never be thought of as an equal, or even as a human, for that matter.

"No, it's bloody well not _fine_. I'm sick of the world treating you like some kind of beast, because you're one of the smartest, most caring people I know, and if you think I'm going to stand here now and listen to you talk about not being a real person, you're…" he trailed off as a small squeak came from one of the cabinets. "What was that?"

"Sounded like a mouse. Do they have animals in this world?"

"I…don't know. I've never seen one…" Sirius paused as a rat scurried out from under the cabinet. A very familiar rat. "Looks like we've found our first clue."


	6. A Rat in the Trap

**So, still no new reviews…but I'll keep posting, I suppose, because what little feedback I **_**have **_**gotten has been quite positive. So thank you for that. **

**Here's chapter six. Enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: Nope. Still not mine. **

**Chapter Six**

"What exactly are we looking for, Sev? Any idea?" They were standing in what had once been a café, by the looks of it, although Lily would never in her right mind have ordered any food from there if she hadn't wanted to suffer horrible food poisoning.

"None whatsoever. But there has to be something; this obviously isn't our final destination."

"What makes you say that?" Lily was examining some rotten fruit on a table. In its condition, it was impossible to tell what it once had been. Something round, apparently.

"Because, dreadful as this place may seem, I doubt that it is half as bad as where those in servitude to the Dark Lord would end up. This would almost seem like a reward for the terrible things they have done. No, whatever higher power decides good and evil, this is nowhere near retribution enough," Snape explained, feeling more at ease around Lily than he had around anybody in some time. "Lily? Do you…forgive me for calling you a…"

"Of course, Sev. Long ago. That's all in the past. James, of course, still hates your guts, but then some things will never change. You've always been a friend to me," she turned to him, green eyes sparkling. "And I know now how much I meant to you, and that touches me, Sev. In your own way, you've been as much of a guardian to Harry as anyone, and that means a lot to me."

"I…thank you," Snape guiltily looked down. "But I was horrible to Harry most of the time; looking at him made me think of James. Only when I looked into his eyes did I remember that he was also your son. I think, in the end, he finally realized that I wasn't his enemy, but it took him a long time. And I suppose I didn't help."

"Not particularly. But it was often humorous to watch," Lily grinned. "Now come on, let's keep looking."

000

The Rat was frightened. It had heard the men come into the shop; the men that wanted to kill him in life and would probably not regret anything they did to him in death. He had to get away from them. Moving quietly out from under an old display case, he was halfway across the floor when he realized that the men had discovered him. Had he squeaked? He must have; but then he had forgotten the Wolf and his heightened senses. Cursing his own stupidity, he made a run for the door, hoping against hope that once he got into the street, the men would not be able to find him. Darting under the door, he scurried down the cobblestones, keeping to the gutters where he could pop down into the sewer if need be.

He thought himself safe, then, but it was only for a moment, because he soon could hear panting behind him. Squeaking again, this time in sheer terror, he tried to dart down the nearest drain when he felt his feet lifting the ground, his worm-like tail firmly in the grasp of a large black dog. The Dog, which was not being at all gentle, almost gleefully carried him back into the store, where he trapped him under a giant paw. A second later, that paw had turned into a hand and the Rat found himself staring into the eyes of a person he knew all too well. His response was to squeak once more, for he knew he was caught, and he knew that the Dog and the Wolf would not think kindly of him. What was he to do?

000

"Caught him. Little bugger tried to slip into the sewer, but I was faster," Sirius puffed out his chest.

"You _do _realized you look like a deranged peacock when you carry on that way," Lupin smiled. "Now, I believe we have some talking to do. Peter, if you would kindly resume your human form?"

000

Why was the Wolf being so nice to him? Was it a trap? Could these men wield enough power to destroy even a soul? But then, even if they could, what did it matter? He had no friends. Among the Dark Lord's followers, he was a coward, and among the Order members, he was a traitor. So what was left? With a squeak that could have passed for a resigned sigh, the Rat transformed.

000

Lupin stared at the mousy-haired, water-eyed man in front of him with veiled interest. This was Peter Pettigrew, their friend, as he had appeared even when they were at Hogwarts. How deceiving appearances could be, he thought wryly, although the fact that the happiest time in Peter's life had been before he joined up with Voldemort gave Lupin some hope that he may not have been truly bad. "Hello, Peter. Long time no see."

"R-Remus. S-Sirius," Peter stuttered out, his voice unnaturally high. "So…you've come to get revenge?"

Sirius growled, but Lupin put a hand on his arm and gave him a warning glance. "Not revenge, no. We've just come to ask you a few questions, that's all."

"What kind of questions?"

"We're on a sort of mission, courtesy of Dumbledore. It seems that Voldemort's parting gift to the afterlife was that he sealed it so we can no longer travel from one place to the next the way we are supposed to. In order to reverse the spell, it requires the destruction of two souls that hold the spell's secret," Lupin explained quickly, not sure how much he should reveal and then deciding that it didn't matter; Peter was hardly friends with Bellatrix and Fenrir anyway.

"So…you've come to kill _me_?" He managed to get out.

"Wormtail, you're an idiot," Sirius sighed. "No, not you. If it were you, would we bother wasting the time to tell you a story? We need to know if there's a way out of here, or, if this is where we're supposed to be, if anyone else is around."

"Who else is with you?" He looked rather frightened, now, despite Sirius' assurance that they weren't there to harm him.

"Oh, just my brother…" Sirius started.

"Lily…"

"James…"

"Severus…"

"And one of the Weasley boys. In short, Wormtail, all people who would not mind if something…untoward ever happened to you."

"O-oh. O-okay," Peter sighed. "No, I'm the only one here…for now. People come and go, I guess, but I spend most of my time as a rat so it hardly matters. This is the place where those who are not truly good and not truly evil come. I guess because I spared Harry's life, I ended up here. Which suits me fine; the other Death Eaters would be all too happy to dismember me, I think. There must be a way to the darker realm where they've all no doubt ended up, but I haven't seen it, and I'm not going to help you look," he stated stubbornly.

"We don't need you to," Lupin assured him. "We just wanted to know if you knew anything that would help."

"And he doesn't. Come on, Moony, let's leave the traitorous rat to his own game," Sirius turned to leave.

"How did you die?"

Lupin glanced at Peter. "Killing curse. The last battle at Hogwarts; the night Voldemort was destroyed," he replied shortly. "Why?"

"Just wondering," Peter shrugged. "Well, I guess this is goodbye, then." For a moment, he looked so like their old friend that Lupin was tempted to think that everything else had just been a bad dream, but then that deranged look appeared once more in his watery eyes and he turned into a rat again, squeaking and scurrying out of the store.

"Well, that was useless," Sirius muttered, wandering around and looking at some of the other things hanging on the walls. "Hey, Moony, check this out: garlic, crosses, stakes…"

"Yes, ways to kill a vampire. Fascinating." He was still staring at the silver knives as if one would fly of its own accord and come after him. "You don't think he's…planning something, do you?"

"Wormtail? Nah, he never did anything unless Voldemort told him to. Biggest coward I've ever met. No, in all likelihood, he'll do just what he said he's going to: crawl into a hole and stay there for all eternity. And good riddance, I say," Sirius snorted, walking behind the counter and randomly opening drawers. "Wow, this place has _everything_. I think you could get rid of all the dark creatures in the world if you wanted to. Should have found it when we were cleaning out Grimmauld Place," he grinned. "Now _that _was a hard job."

"Yes, and since I was practically living there for most of the year, I know that all too well," Lupin smiled back. "I don't know how many moon-Boggarts I had to deal with during that year, but it seemed one was moving in almost every week."

"I kinda miss it, you know. I mean, I was never fond of the people who lived there, but the house was pretty neat in its own, dark, slightly twisted way. But at any rate, having these things around can't hurt," he shrugged, gathering up various implements. "Who knows what we might encounter? Now, if only we had a…" he paused, as a small bag appeared in front of him. "Perfect!" And he took to stuffing it with whatever was in reach, even though the bag looked too small to hold as much as a can of garlic. "Sometimes I really love this place." Striding back to the window, he eyed the knives. "What d'you think, Moony? Should we take them; for Fenrir? Just in case?"

"No."

"But he's…"

"I know, Sirius, I do. I want him destroyed probably more than anybody, but not like that. Silver…it's the most painful thing one can do to a werewolf; even more painful than death. It burns the flesh right off…it's…" he shuddered involuntarily. "I would not ask anybody to suffer that fate. And if it gets in the bloodstream, it's nearly impossible to stop. Even the smallest stab wound can be fatal, because it clots the arteries and kills the body inside-out." He turned back to the door, away from the knives.

"Remus." Sirius was using his gentle tone again, the tone he used only when he was around those who had no need to see his outwardly tough façade. "Moony…I had no idea. I knew that silver was…that it was dangerous for you, but I didn't…I'm such an idiot for even suggesting we keep those things anywhere near us!" He exclaimed, walking over to gently grasp Lupin's shoulder.

"It's alright. You didn't know better, and most people don't. Now can we get out of here?" He smiled, and Sirius nodded.

000

"It's going to be obvious again, isn't it?" Fred asked from where he was sitting on a bench leading into a dark alley. "It's going to be easy to find?"

"Who knows?" James was leaning against a lamppost, hands in his pockets, looking very nonchalant. "Could be anywhere, I guess."

"Anywhere indeed, Mr. Potter," Regulus sniped, coming out of a nearby building. He wasn't altogether unpleasant, Fred reasoned; he just needed to pick up a little more of his brother's good nature. "But nowhere that I can see."

"We'll find it," Fred smiled, walking a little up the street and into what looked like a joke shop…only a joke shop for those interested in jokes that could cause fatal harm. "Well, would you look at that…" he immediately went in, looking around at everything he could find. Whoever had thought up these contraptions was brilliant! Sick in the head, of course, but downright brilliant all the same. As he nosed about, he saw something in one of the corners that caught his attention. "James?"

"Yes?" James poked his head around the door. "Is that what I think it is?"

"A Vanishing Cabinet? Sure looks like one," Fred pulled the door open, revealing a dark tunnel not unlike the one they had followed to get to Knockturn Alley. "Worth a shot, isn't it?"

"You're rather good at finding these secret entrances, aren't you?" James smiled.

"I had help from the best: the Marauders," Fred replied cockily, earning a wider smile from James.

"And don't you forget it," James replied proudly. "The two hours are almost up, anyway. Let's head back to where we came in," he suggested.

000

"He did? You're getting rather good at this, Freddie," Sirius gazed admiringly at the red-haired man. "So, are we going through?"

"I don't know," Lily looked thoughtful. "It's not early anymore; and we can't expect this to take only one day. I say we head back to the castle for a good night's rest and start exploring bright and early tomorrow. Otherwise, who knows where we'll end up sleeping?"

"Good idea, Lils. You all okay with that?" James asked, and the others nodded. As they turned to go back through the tunnel to Hogwarts, Sirius put a hand on James' arm to hold him back.

"Jamie, you know who me and Moony ran into?"

"Who?"

"Peter," Lupin turned around, knowing that with James and Sirius, the first thing on both of their minds would be to go and find the rat and do who-knew-what with him, even if Sirius was convinced he was no threat. Sometimes the two of them tended to act before they thought about what might happen afterward.

"WHAT? That sneaky git, I'm going to teach him a lesson…"

"James, _no_," Lupin pulled him back. "He's not worth it, and you know it. Let him stay here; he's of no harm. I daresay he won't be giving Fenrir and Bellatrix tip-offs. And, for what it's worth, he's afraid of us. You said it yourself, Sirius; he won't be any trouble."

"He might not, that's true, but the thought of him getting no worse punishment than this is…is…"

"Sirius, I _know _how much you want revenge. He didn't have to rot for twelve years in Azkaban, he never had to know how it felt to be blamed for something he didn't do. He was hailed as a hero, and that rankles, but he was our friend once. I don't know what changed in him; maybe it was true that he was weak and he just wanted stronger people to protect him; but what I _do _know is that he risked his own life to be there for me when I needed you…all of you, and even though he wasn't good at Transfiguration, he managed to become an Animagus to help me. So please, don't go after him, because I know that you'll regret it," Lupin beseeched his friend, unsure as to how Sirius would take this; after all, he was practically defending Peter.

Sirius stared at him curiously for a moment before raising his hands in a gesture of surrender. "You're right; I'm being a prat. He wasn't all bad. Sorry."

"Me too," James looked down. "He can do what he wants to without us threatening him."

"But what happened to us killing him that night in the Shack?" Sirius raised an eyebrow.

"Full moon and all; the Wolf was prowling a little too close to the surface. He wants Peter dead, I'm sure; he wants everybody who's ever offended him dead; but I'm glad that Harry talked some sense into us. After all, when you've just killed a man it's hard to prove that you're not a murderer," he smiled grimly.

"True. Didn't help anyway, of course, because I never did get a pardon, but I guess that's life," Sirius shrugged. "We should get back before they come looking for us, though."

"Yeah," James agreed, and the three headed back to Hogwarts.


	7. A Midnight Snack

**So, time for a new chapter! And thank you for the review; I'm glad you find it interesting. **

**Disclaimer: Still not mine**

**Chapter Seven**

"You've been really quiet. You're not afraid, are you?"

Although his tone was teasing, Lupin could tell that Sirius was genuinely concerned when he asked this. It was…Lupin looked at his watch…three in the morning, and needless to say, neither of them could sleep.

"A little," he replied softly. "I'm just wondering what'll be there. If it really is an eternity of punishment for behaving badly in life, what will have to get through to get back out of there?" he mused.

"What's the worst that could happen?"

"One of us getting destroyed."

"No, I mean, otherwise."

"Oh…a world where there's always a full moon," Lupin replied seriously, although he knew his companion would take it as a joke.

"Good one, Moony. But I guess we won't know until we get there. I have a good feeling about this, though. After all, Harry destroyed Voldemort, so I think we can handle a couple of his cronies," Sirius grinned.

"Don't forget, Pads, it's because of Voldemort that we…that all of us, actually…are dead. In one way or another, it's because of him," Lupin responded.

"Yep, he was one piece of work, that's for sure," Sirius chuckled. "I wish I could have been there to see him taken down at last. That would have been something."

"Indeed."

"So…reckon you'll get any sleep tonight?"

"None whatsoever. But then, who's to say whether we really need any?"

"True. I pulled some all-nighters, but it seemed that I always felt more alert after I was slept out. Want to go for a walk or something?" Sirius sat up.

"I suppose. We've hardly got anything better to do," Lupin agreed.

As they meandered through the dark school, they eventually ended up in the Great Hall, where Regulus was sitting at the Slytherin table, staring up at the enchanted ceiling. "How goes it, baby brother?" Sirius sat down across from him. "Couldn't sleep?"

"Never do," Regulus replied with a small grin. "We don't need to, you know."

"I do. But it still feels good," Sirius countered. "You look worried. Why is everyone worried?"

"I'm not," Regulus assured him. "At least, not worried about what will happen. After all, it's not like you would care if I were…"

"Care? _Care? _ Of course I would care, Reg! You're my only brother! I know I kind of ignored you after you went all Death Eater on me, but we had fun as kids, didn't we? And now that I find out you helped hide one of the Horcruxes, well, I'm willing to forget you ever were on his side!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Really? You would? I mean, I didn't really know what I was getting into. I was young; everyone in Slytherin was talking about it, so I figured it must have been the right thing to do. I mean, Lucius and Bella and Cissy were all excited about it, so I just thought…" he shrugged. "I guess I was badly mistaken."

"Yeah, you were, but I've done my share of stupid things, too. Standing in the middle of a blown-up street laughing my head off, for one," he looked down sheepishly.

"Yes, Pads, you've never really explained what was so funny about that," Lupin interjected.

"It wasn't funny, Moony. It was ridiculous. Little Peter, having that much power…I never thought he could even pull off a Body-Bind Curse and here he goes and blows up the whole street. Plus I was still torn up about Prongs and Lily. It was an impulsive reaction, I guess, although all it really did was make me look like a nutter," he grinned. "Guess I was convincing, huh?"

"Fairly. I wondered when you'd lost your mind; you seemed to be in firm control of it only a few days earlier," Lupin shrugged. "But I'm glad to see the two of you getting along. He moped for days when he heard you'd gone to the other side," Lupin assured Regulus.

"He would. He always _was _the sensitive one, Regulus smirked. Oh, not around anybody he didn't know, if he could help it, but around me… he shrugged. I always looked like the tough one.

That's not true. I never cried that much, Sirius looked offended.

If you consider once a week not much, then no, you didn't, Regulus retorted.

"Sometimes you really annoy me," Sirius grumbled.

"I'm your little brother. It's my job."

"You're such a cynic. At least I inherited all of the humor _and _the good looks in the family," Sirius ran a hand through his black hair.

"Yes, and all of the vanity, as well," Regulus quipped back, which caused Sirius to glare at him and Lupin to chuckle. As Sirius turned his gaze on the werewolf, Lupin replied, "Well, it's true."

"Alright, fine," Sirius let out a resigned sigh. "I'm feeling rather peckish, though…." He trailed off and a few moments later a platter of sandwiches appeared. "Excellent!"

"We don't need to eat, either," Regulus informed his brother with a scowl.

"I know that too, little brother. But I love food too much to _not _eat. Especially when I lost twelve years of my eating life to Azkaban," he mumbled through a mouthful of food.

"Pads, don't talk with your mouth full," Lupin reprimanded his friend, taking a sip from his tea.

"Tea again?"

"What? I like it," Lupin replied. "At least I'm not devouring enough for ten men."

"Man cannot live by tea and chocolate alone," Sirius announced with a grin, earning a swat on the shoulder. "Ow, Moony…"

"You really are sensitive, aren't you?"

"Be quiet," Sirius spared a few seconds to glare at his friend once more before turning his attention back to the pile of sandwiches.

"You think we have a chance?" This question was directed at Lupin. The amber-eyed man glanced at Regulus, knowing that, because of Sirius' practical disownment from his family, the two had never really known each other except by sight. He found it somewhat intriguing that despite the fact Sirius and Regulus had similarities, they were such opposites that it sometimes seemed they weren't even related.

"Truthfully? I think Dumbledore is right: there is no better group of people to go on this mission. We're all qualified magically, which is important, and we all have our own unique strengths that I think will compliment each other well. I think that we had all better try our hardest to come out alive, though, because there will be a lot of guilt if something horribly untoward should occur," he replied soberly. "It's no joke, and I don't think that any of us see it as such, but I think that some," his voice dropped to an undertone, "your brother included, may not see the seriousness of it all, despite the warnings that Dumbledore and even I myself have given them. I do _not _want to lose any of you, and especially not Sirius, because I've lost him twice. We've spent a mere four of the last twenty years together, and having him given back and then taken merely two years later was harder than I ever could have anticipated. I had accepted the fact that he was in Azkaban for life, but when he came back, it took fifteen years off of my life. There were very few people I let into my life; fewer still whom I trusted explicitly. I thought that maybe something might have gone right when he seemingly came back from what I considered death, but then he was gone barely as soon as he arrived.

"True, it was because of him and the Order that I met my wife, but there are some things that a person I've known for three years doesn't know as well as a person I've known for twenty-five," he finished, knowing that Sirius, engrossed in his sandwiches, hadn't heard a word.

"Wow." Regulus sat back. "I mean, Sirius _loved _to talk about you at home; he never mentioned your name, but he wasn't shy about telling Mum that he was friends with a werewolf. I figured it out after I got to Hogwarts, of course, but I had sense enough not to blab to anybody; after all, I had nothing against you, no matter how misguided I thought my brother to be," he smiled. "I guess if maybe we had just taken a little more time to understand each other, we would've gotten along much better.

"I admit, I've made my fair share of mistakes as well. I tried to rectify them by saving Kreacher and then stealing the Horcrux, but all it ended up in was death. It helped, obviously, because I ended up here and not in whatever Hell the Death Eaters are forced to live in, but I always feared that, no matter what I tried, he would never forgive me. I guess I gave him too little credit," Regulus admitted. "And I want you to know that I've always admired you; back in school. I always watched Sirius and his friends, and even though I had figured out that you were a werewolf, you were always such the anti-dark creature. I always expected werewolves to act like…well, more like this Fenrir Greyback that you've mentioned, but you're the opposite of all of that. You're so calm and collected all the time, no matter how infuriating Sirius and that James Potter can be. I guess I shouldn't make assumptions like that, but…"

"No, it's quite true, and it's for that reason that werewolves are often shunned in society. Most figure that because they are thought of so poorly, they should live up to that reputation. They form their own clans and live solely with each other, like animals. Because Dumbledore agreed to accept me into Hogwarts, I never had to experience a life like that, and it seems that the pull of the Wolf has a very weak effect on me, even during the full moon. I guess it's all in how life turns out," Lupin admitted. "Sometimes I don't blame the wizarding world for being prejudiced against lycanthropy, because I have to admit that we have mostly brought it upon ourselves. But maybe one day that will change."

"You think he's heard a word of this?" Regulus gestured toward his brother.

"Not a one. A nuclear bomb could go off and your brother wouldn't notice if he was eating," Lupin replied with a grin.

"Got any ideas to get his attention?"

"Hmm…I know a few handy jinxes, but the easiest thing to get him to notice is just to do _this_!" Waving his wand, the entire plate including the sandwich in Sirius' hand vanished. He turned a glare on Lupin. "What happened, Sirius?"

"Like you don't know," Sirius shot back. "Honestly, to interrupt a man when he's _eating_. Have you no manners at all, Remus Lupin?"

"Tell me, brother, while you were so busy enjoying your four o'clock snack, did you happen to hear anything of our conversation?" Regulus jibed.

"Your…you were talking?" Sirius asked, evidently confused, and when Lupin and Regulus both burst out laughing, he only looked more perplexed.

Suddenly, there was a loud 'crack' and Fred Weasley appeared on the table. "Did I hear sounds of merriment coming from this room? I'll have you know, gentlemen, that a good joke is hardly a good joke unless Fred Weasley is there to take part in it," he grinned.

"We were just discussing how oblivious my brother is. I don't know how well you knew him in life, but unless he's got absolutely nothing better to do, he tends to completely ignore his surroundings," Regulus smirked at Sirius.

"That's not true and you know it! I'll only completely ignore somebody if there's food to be consumed!" Sirius looked aghast. "But all this eating has made me tired, and I want to get a few more hours of sleep in before we go off on our wild adventure tomorrow," he stretched, yawning. "Coming, Moony?"

"Alright. Just let me finish my tea, first…"

"You can have tea anytime you want," Sirius grabbed him around the wrist and all but marched him out of the great hall. Regulus and Fred stared after them, blinking, before starting to chuckle.

"So, we're related, huh?" Fred glanced at the other boy.

"All pure-bloods are related, somehow. I guess you're my cousin. I think most wizards, unless they're Muggle-born, are related in some fashion. So you took over for my brother while at Hogwarts, did you?" Regulus asked.

"My twin brother George and I. Best pair of pranksters the school has ever seen…I think we could have given Sirius and James a run for their money. Of course, there was a girl names Hermione who tended to berate us for our tricks…so did our older brother Percy, for that matter, but we even opened up a joke shop in Diagon Alley. George better not mess it up," he glared, but it soon turned into a good-natured grin. "I should get back to bed, too. And you know, Regulus…you're not half-bad," he flashed a quick smile and Disapparated, leaving Regulus by himself again.

But unlike the last time he had been by himself, he was feeling a lot better about everything.


	8. New Mysteries

**Thanks for the review! And sorry about the disappearing quotations; they're there in my original document, but for some reason they never transferred to FanFiction properly…I'll have to go back and fix it sometime! Thanks for pointing it out to me, though. Enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: Not mine. **

**Chapter Eight**

Lupin didn't want to get up. He was nervous; more nervous than he had ever been before a full moon or any battle he had ever been a part of. Despite Sirius' assurances that everything would be fine, he couldn't help but feel that something horrible was going to happen. And the problem was that most of the time when he felt something bad was impending, he was usually right.

Add to that the fact that he was warm and comfortable, and he certainly had no desire to go back into the dark abyss that awaited them beyond Knockturn Alley. But he had to, if he wanted to have any hope of seeing his wife or anybody else again. So with a resigned sigh, he gently shook Sirius' shoulder, saying, "Padfoot? Time to wake up."

"Urrgh…five more minutes?" Sirius mumbled sleepily, his speech then disintegrating into unintelligible mutters.

"Come on, Pads. I don't want to have to pull a James and hex you," Lupin replied sternly.

"What? Hex?" Sirius' eyes popped open. "Alright, I'm awake." He yawned and pushed himself up onto an elbow, managing to stay upright for about five seconds before falling back onto Lupin's chest. "Can't. Too tired."

"Off, Pads. Must you be so stubborn in the morning _all _the time?" Lupin tried to shift out from under the other man, but Sirius was a dead weight on his chest.

"Sorry, Moony. You're right. We have stuff to do," he pushed himself up and swung his legs out of the bed. "Hmm…would be a bit awkward to go meandering about in the darkness in full robes, wouldn't it?" He closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again, his robes had been replaced by a black t-shirt bearing the name, "_The Weird Sisters_" and ripped blue jeans. "There. That's better. You might want to change, too, Moony."

"Pads, you _know _fashion was never my strong point. Besides, I don't look half as good in anything as you do," Lupin replied truthfully, smiling a little. "If I try, I'll end up looking like the biggest fashion disaster the world has ever known."

"You don't give yourself enough credit, Remus. I've seen you outside of school…it was never that bad. Granted, that was in the seventies, but still…you must have seen some of the students on weekends when you taught at Hogwarts. Think of something like that," Sirius suggested.

"Oh, fine…" Lupin thought about it for a moment, picturing an outfit in his mind, and when he opened his eyes again he saw Sirius staring at him in what he took to be surprise. "It's not that bad, is it?"

"You should look for yourself, Moony," Sirius replied, gesturing to a mirror in the corner. Lupin cautiously made his way over and glanced at his reflection, a little amazed himself at what he had managed to pull off. He was wearing an argyle-printed vest overtop of a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, and a pair of grey jeans and sneakers on the bottom. It looked, in short, like something Percy would have worn, except Percy would never have put jeans with a top like that.

"So? You don't think it's too old?" Lupin turned around, smoothing down his shirt self-consciously.

"Preppy, definitely, but then you always have been like that," Sirius grinned. "But seriously, Moony, you have to take a little more pride in your appearance. You can wear anything you want now; shabby robes should be thrown out the window and burned. And, believe me, I know that while nobody will ever be as gorgeous as me," he ran a hand through his hair to emphasize the point, "you are far better-looking than you've ever given yourself credit for. But come on," he slung an arm around the werewolf's shoulders and propelled him out of the room, and together they made their way down to the painting of the fruit bowl.

"About time you show…" James stopped, blinking. "Wow, Remus. I…wow."

"You look stunning," Lily overrode her husband's stuttering. "You always have been, I mean, but the clothes suit you perfectly." She and James were also wearing Muggle attire, he noticed, and soon Fred appeared in the corridor, dressed as Lupin had always seen him on weekends.

"We leaving soon?" He asked, looking excited at the prospect.

"I should hope so, because the sooner we get this over with, the sooner I can be rid of you all," Snape replied, striding down the hallway. He, of course, was wearing the same bat-like robes he always did, but nobody had any desire to tell him otherwise. "Where's that fool brother of yours, Black?"

"Be nice, Snivellus," Sirius airily waved a hand. "He'll be here when he gets here. He always was slow," he added in a whisper to James, who nodded with a smile.

"I heard that." Regulus was dressed almost identically to his brother, except his shirt and pants were both black. "Let's go."

000

"Well? First impressions?" Obviously James, but it was somewhat difficult to tell when there was no light at all.

"Dark," Sirius replied. "Um…anyone want to turn a light on?"

"_Lumos_," Lupin muttered, and a bright light shot from the tip of his wand. They were in what looked light the basement of an old castle, but unlike Hogwarts, it wasn't old in a welcoming and historic way; it was old in a creepy-haunted-mansion type of way.

"Lovely décor. They could have given my mother a run for her money," Sirius grinned. "Let's get moving."

Walking along, they came to a door which led into a long hallway. A dungeon, from the looks of it; cells lined the walls, and the air smelled rank and mouldy. "You think it pays to split up again?" Fred asked quietly.

"Not at the moment," Lupin replied. "There really only seems to be one clear path."

"At least there are no skeletons left in the cells to traumatize us," Regulus was grinning. "Of course, that would be a little hard, since everyone here is already dead."

"Not funny, Reg," Sirius muttered, running his hands up and down his arms as if to ward off a chill. "Darn place feels like Azkaban all over."

"Don't think about it, Pads," James gripped Sirius' shoulder. "This isn't Azkaban; we're all with you this time."

"I know, Jamie. Thanks," Sirius smiled, his confidence obviously bolstered somewhat.

After walking through the dungeon for some time, they came to an iron gate apparently leading to the upper reaches of the castle. "So how do we get through?" Fred inspected the bars. "If we try to blast it out of the way, anyone who's around is going to hear us."

"Too bad we don't have the ability to walk through walls like real ghosts," Sirius pointed out.

"That's because we _aren't _ghosts, Black. We are souls, and souls are confined to whatever the rules of the world about them are. And I have a sneaky suspicion that the rules of this realm are different than the one we came from, and it would be prudent to learn what those rules are before we make any mistakes that prove fatal," Snape sneered at the other man.

"Shut it, Snivellus," Sirius muttered.

"He's right, Sirius," Lupin agreed. "So what's the best way to discover these limitations?"

"Well, if my assumptions are right, I would think that many of these tricks are ones that only Death Eaters would know, and, as a former one, I believe I know how to get through the gate without actually having to open it." Facing the metal bars, Snape lifted his left hand in a sort of salute and walked forward, passing through the gate as if it wasn't there at all.

A little surprised, the others nonetheless followed suit. Even Regulus didn't seem to know about this little Death Eater quirk. "And just _why _did Voldemort come up with this?" Sirius asked.

"Because, unlike you, we did not have only one meeting spot. Therefore, it would have been extremely time-consuming to try and inform everybody where the new place was, so we came up with the signal to allow passage. In the actual world, it would have only applied to those with the Dark Mark, but I think we can safely say that this is one of those new rules I mentioned earlier," Snape replied as they continued.

"Oh. Well, _I _think…"

But they never got to hear exactly what Sirius thought, because at that moment, a terrible chill filled the dank corridor. It felt vaguely familiar to all of them, almost like a…

"Dementor…" Sirius finished the thought. "But how…" he cut off again as the air got increasingly colder; cold enough so that their breath was visible. And then the feeling came, that indescribable feeling that all the happiness and joy in the world was gone. And suddenly the realization hit Lupin like somebody had just dumped ice water down his shirt. They were _souls_. And what did Dementors steal from a body?

They had to fight. Lupin had always prided himself on how little Dementors affected him, because all the horrors they tried to make him relive were nothing compared to the pain of transforming into a werewolf. But from the intensity of the cold, there were a lot more than one Patronus could handle. He turned back to his companions. Lily and James were embracing fiercely, looking as if they were rooted to the spot. Regulus was staring blankly into space, his lips moving soundlessly. The expression on Fred's face was somewhere between confusion and fear, because even if the memories a Dementor evoked weren't strong, somebody who had not been around them for long would still have a hard time thinking clearly.

And he didn't even want to look at Sirius, knowing full well how much agony the other man would be in at the moment. He turned his head slightly to look at Snape, who, being who he was, was not letting the Dementor affect him no matter what he was truly feeling. "I guess it's you and me, then." Snape nodded, and the two raised their wands.

_"Expecto Patronum!" _

Snape's silver doe pranced forward first, lighting up the darkness and revealing what seemed to be a black mass right in the middle of the hallway. Not true Dementors, then, but whatever it was Dementors were created from. Probably just as deadly, if not more so. "Can she hold it long enough for us to get past?" Lupin asked.

Snape nodded, his face steady. "But hurry."

"Come on," Lupin called, and Lily, James, Regulus and Fred seemed to snap out of their reveries and ran past, the mass of darkness trying to overtake them but failing because of the Patronus. Not even bothering to get Sirius up, Lupin hefted the other man over his shoulder and nodded to Snape. "Go. Mine can take us through."

Snape knew better than to protest and darted around the cloud, his doe vanishing as soon as he was safe. "Alright, Moony. Let's do this." Shifting Sirius to a more comfortable position, he glanced up at his Patronus; the silver wolf looked into his eyes and nodded, letting out a howl. The darkness in front seemed to be intensifying, and Lupin saw that it had spread so that it now covered almost the entire hallway. They would have to be quick; there was no telling what would happen if they got caught inside it.

Getting as close to the wall as he could, and moving as fast as possible without dislodging Sirius from his already precarious perch, he moved carefully around the black cloud, keeping Moony between them and it at all times. Once, it almost seemed as if even his Patronus wasn't strong enough to hold it off, but he kept concentrating on the strongest memories he could come up with, and they got quickly through to the other side.

Staggering a little under Sirius' weight; the other man had always been larger; he set him carefully on the ground and stood back up, only to be caught in a firm embrace courtesy of Lily. "Oh, Remus, we didn't know what…when that cloud closed up, we thought…" she was practically crying.

"It's fine, Lils. I'm fine," he assured her. James gave him a look over her head that seemed to clearly state, 'women,' and Lupin couldn't help laughing. Disentangling himself from her arms, he knelt down to where Sirius was still laying on the ground, shaking. "Padfoot? Sirius, are you alright?"

"I'm f-fine…" Sirius forced out, trying to get himself into a sitting position. Looking up at the wolf, he inclined his head. "Thanks, Moony." Lupin realized that he was still controlling the Patronus and let his focus waver; the wolf disappeared. "That felt horrible. Like there were thousands of them; even those on the Hogwarts grounds that night with Harry didn't affect me like that," he shuddered.

"It's fine. We're past, and it doesn't look like it will follow. And, Pads, soul or not, you need to lose some weight. I almost couldn't carry you," Lupin gently jibed, earning a tremulous smile from the other.

"But you did. Thank you, Remus."

"Of course. Anytime. But we should keep going; I have a feeling that Dementors are the least of our worries. Can you walk? Do you…Wait!" With a triumphant shout, he dug into his pocket and revealed a bar of chocolate. "Here."

Sirius was staring at him in shock. "You never cease to amaze me, Moony. But then, who else but you would carry chocolate at all times."

" 'Always a good idea to have chocolate,'" Fred quipped. "I guess you're right, Remus."

"Of course. If there was one thing I learned by being around Harry, it was that it never hurts to have a bar of chocolate somewhere around you," Lupin stood up, extending a hand to help Sirius get up.

"I feel back to normal, now. It really does wonders. Let's go!" Sirius bounded down the hallway, his normal energy apparently restored. With a collective sigh, the others followed.


	9. The Real World

**Alright, this chapter just kind of came out of nowhere. It wasn't supposed to happen, and then, when it did, I actually thought it came out rather well. I suppose you can chalk it up to me wanting to try writing different characters, but whatever: it is what it is. Enjoy. **

**Disclaimer: Definitely not mine. **

**Chapter Nine**

Albus Dumbledore stared down into his empty study, wondering, not for the first time, what was happening with the 'mission' he had entrusted his former students to. It seemed that his whole life had been about getting other people to do things when he couldn't, because every time he tried to do it himself, something would go horribly wrong.

Look at Marvolo's Ring, for instance. He had been so set on finding that Resurrection Stone that he had not even considered the consequences of destroying a cursed object. And it had killed him.

So no, it was best that he did not go with them. They were capable themselves, and when he was along, it was expected that he know _everything_.

And he wouldn't. He could not even imagine the horrors and trials that awaited the seven souls he had sent down into the abyss. If one of them was destroyed, it would be his fault, he knew, but he trusted their judgment enough to know that they would do anything and everything to keep each other safe.

True, some of them had been mortal enemies in life, but he knew Sirius and James well enough to know that any hatred they still had for Severus would not interfere with their mission; Remus and Lily would see to that. Fred was an amiable boy, who could get along with anybody. As well as play a prank on anybody, Dumbledore reasoned, but he needed to do something to get his mind off of thinking about is brother, and how they were separated. Not forever, but for a good while, he suspected. And then there was young Regulus Black…an anomaly, even to Dumbledore, who had taught him.

The clearest fact was that he repented, realizing that his young and foolish ideals about what Voldemort meant to accomplish were horribly misguided, but Dumbledore wished he had known that sooner or he would not have gone with Harry to steal the fake locket. He gathered that Sirius and Regulus had been close in their youth, but that their opposing viewpoints had caused a rift in their teenage years; a rift that he only hoped would be repaired.

He was saved from pondering further by the appearance of none other than the Boy-Who-Lived walking into his study. Perhaps it would do him good to talk to somebody; just talk, like they had done when Harry had so briefly entered the afterlife. The castle was lonely when everybody else was gone, and nobody new could enter.

"Professor?" Harry asked quietly. He was obviously still unsure whether he should disturb Dumbledore, but Dumbledore wanted nothing more than to be disturbed, so he moved into the portrait frame where Harry could see him.

"Yes, Harry?"

"Well, I…that is, we're having a bit of a problem, and I wondered…"

Ah, so Harry was now feeling guilty about coming to him with a problem; because that was what people had done almost all of his life. "Harry, you know that you can talk to me about whatever you wish. What is it that is troubling you?"

"Well, it's just…"

"Bloody well won't work, Hermione! You can't just tell me that _everyone _in the entire world has 'forgotten' how to Apparate! Try it for yourself!"

"I _have, _Ron. And no, I don't expect that everyone has forgotten, but I think that we're simply overreacting."

"Ah, I see Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger will soon be joining us," Dumbledore smiled down at Harry.

"Seems like it. Oy, Ron, Hermione, keep it down, will you?"

"Sorry, mate," Ron walked into the office, followed by a still-glowering Hermione. "But Hermione and I have both tried it, and we can't…"

"Apparate. Yeah, I heard, and I expect the whole school did, too. That's actually what I wanted to ask you about," Harry turned back to Dumbledore, who tried to mask the worried expression that flitted across his face. "It just feels…wrong. I thought that everything would feel better now that Voldemort's destroyed, but it still seems like there's this cloud over everything…like he's not truly gone," Harry finished.

"My dear boy, of course Voldemort is dead! You saw to that most excellently. However," he debated briefly whether or not to tell them, and then decided that, if the conditions were as bad as it seemed, they had a right to know, "he managed to lay one final spell before his soul was completely destroyed. I had thought at first that it only affected the afterlife, but now I see that his power was considerably greater than I had first imagined." He explained briefly about Bellatrix and Fenrir, and when he was done, the trio in front of him all gave him identical wide-eyed stares.

"So…you mean…we can't _Apparate?_" Ron looked aghast.

"It would seem that way. Of course, Voldemort lacked the power to completely void the Apparition spell, so from what I can gather, if you are within the confines of a building or its grounds and wish to transport yourself somewhere else within that same building, it would be possible, but you cannot leave the property. Annoying enough in your world, but quite more-so in ours, where the only way we can normally travel from place-to-place is indeed by Apparition."

"Oh. So we should probably tell Kingsley that nothing he does is going to help, right? He's turning the Ministry upside-down looking for answers. It rankled a bit when everyone had to Floo back; we had a whole line-up at the fireplace," Ron grinned at the memory of full-grown wizards and witches standing in an orderly line in front of the Great Hall fireplace.

"That would be advisable," Dumbledore nodded.

"So how long will it take for it to be fixed?" Harry asked.

"That, I cannot say, for I am not one of those who went on the mission," Dumbledore replied. "I need to stay here, for now, as there are plenty of housekeeping items that Minerva and I need to discuss for the remainder of this school term and, more importantly, what will happen next year. However, the people I have sent out are certainly more than capable of fulfilling this quest…but there are dangers they will face that not even I can fathom, so I can not hope to tell you how long it will take."

"People? What sort of people?" Ron looked interested.

"_Ron!" _Hermione whacked his shoulder.

"No, no, you all have a right to know. I believe you are…acquainted with most of them; some better than others; and I daresay that I would trust no other group of people to this mission; unless, of course, it were the three of you, who have performed more than admirably in finding and destroying the Horcruxes," Dumbledore inclined his head. Ron and Hermione beamed, but Harry was still looking unsure.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Dumbledore? I mean, I have a good idea of who you sent, and they don't all…well, they're not exactly bosom friends, if you know what I mean," he said.

Ron and Hermione glanced at him with interest, but Dumbledore had to suppress a laugh. "I had the exact same worry myself, Harry, but I think that they can put aside their disagreements at least until this whole business is concluded."

"And what about…" Dumbledore could tell that Harry was mentally calculating something. "A certain event that will happen next week?"

"Ah," Dumbledore nodded. "You've been paying attention, have you?"

"Since I found out. I always think about him on those days, you know? I feel bad," Harry admitted. "But will he…"

"Truth be told, I do not know. I have not met any others of his kind here, so it will be a surprise for all of us. Not the best way to find out, I realize, but he is prepared for anything," Dumbledore assured Harry.

"Will somebody tell me what's going on?" Ron interrupted, looking more than a little confused.

"Hush, Ronald," Hermione reprimanded him. "If they are going to destroy souls, though, would it not be possible that they could also be destroyed?"

"Regrettably, yes," Dumbledore nodded gravely. "I am quite certain that it will not happen; however, there is always a chance."

"_What?_" Harry glared at the portrait. "You mean, you've sent the souls I care the most about on a mission that could see them forever _destroyed? _Is this like the time you 'forgot' to tell me I had to die in order for Voldemort to as well?" Harry was obviously unhappy.

"I gave them a chance to say no…"

"Like they bloody well would!"

"Harry, hear me out. It has to be done, for all our sakes. I can't promise that nothing bad is going to happen, because that would be a lie, but I would advise you not to worry about it," Dumbledore did his best to calm the boy.

"WILL SOMEBODY TELL ME WHAT'S GOING ON?" Ron yelled, causing the other three to glance at him in surprise. "Who are these souls? Who won't get along? What's happening next week?"

"Honestly, Ron, do you _never_ pay attention?" Hermione gave an overly-pronounced sigh. "Even I don't know who all of the souls are, but I know enough to predict, at least, that the 'thing' happening next week is the full moon."

"And the people not getting along are my father and Sirius with Snape," Harry added.

"Oh. So…they're…alive?"

"_Ron_, you're a complete idiot sometimes. You know that, right? No, they're _not _alive. They're souls; the same as Professor Dumbledore. Probably look the same as they did when Harry called them through the Resurrection Stone."

"Oh…so who's all in on this mission?" He turned back to Dumbledore.

"Well, you've guessed most of them, I think. Remus, Sirius, James, Lily, Severus…and I know you at least know who he is, but Regulus Black as well," Dumbledore explained.

"Regulus? Sirius can't be happy about that," Harry grinned. "I can just see his face."

"They're working on rebuilding their relationship, I would think," Dumbledore nodded. "Oh, and also, Mr. Weasley…somebody you know very well, but I…"

"I knew it!" Ron grinned. "George'll be so jealous! Fred gets to spend quality time with the original Marauders!"

"_Ron!_" Hermione exclaimed again. "Aren't you a little sad that your brother…that he…"

"Hermione, I know Fred. And the last thing Fred would have wanted was people grieving over him. Besides, now I know that we'll meet again in the afterlife, the whole thing doesn't seem quite so depressing," Ron assured her, putting an arm around her shoulders. She continued to glare at him.

"But he's in great danger!"

"Look, Hermione, we've been in 'great danger' loads of times, but we always manage to make it through. He's got the best wizards of their age protecting him. I mean, I may not like the man, but Snape's a phenomenal wizard. Harry's parents and Sirius were some of the best in their class, and Lupin probably knows more than anyone I've ever met…besides you, Professor," he added to Dumbledore. "He'll be _fine."_

Hermione hardly looked convinced, but she nodded nonetheless. "Alright. I guess you have a point. What's wrong, Harry? You still seem a little worried."

"I'm fine," Harry smiled. "I just…know that Sirius is a little…well…_angry _with Bellatrix, and that he would certainly put himself in danger to get rid of her, but I trust them…" he sighed. "I guess it just feels weird to have to sit back and wait, when I've always been the one people have been counting on."

"We all need a break, mate," Ron clapped him on the shoulder. "And I'm feeling somewhat peckish. Y'think Kreature'll get us some food? And I have to tell my family about Fred; I'm getting a little fed up with Mum crying over everything," Ron admitted in an undertone. "I'll see you guys later. Bye, Professor," he waved and exited the office.

"I should go, too," Hermione added. "I want to see if there's anything in the library about the spell that Voldemort cast."

Turning back to Dumbledore, Harry shrugged. "Guess I'd best be off as well. I promised myself I'd go to see Andromeda today and…explain as best I can, I suppose. I know she'll be upset, but I _am _Teddy's…godfather…" he said the word as if he still didn't quite believe it. "And I want to do the best I can…for Remus and Tonks. I think I have a better chance than Sirius, though," he added with a grin. "I don't think I'll be thrown in Azkaban anytime soon."

"I should hope not," Dumbledore chuckled. "And I daresay that Remus and Nymphadora, when they meet up again, will be happy with any updates you can give me. And as for Sirius…would you like me to pass on his comment?" His blue eyes were twinkling.

"No, probably not. I wouldn't want to be attacked as soon as I enter the afterlife. No doubt he'll give me enough trouble as it is," Harry laughed. "See you later, Professor," he nodded and exited the office.

Yes, Dumbledore thought to himself, there were capable people in the world. Both in that life and the next, and that gave him hope.


	10. Revelations and Complications

**Sorry I haven't updated for a while! I may be more inclined to update if I get some more reviews (hint, hint). Anyway, here it is! **

**Disclaimer: It certainly doesn't belong to me. **

**Chapter Ten**

"Do I have to?"

"Yes, Reg. You and Snivelly have to talk to her and find out what's going on," Sirius hissed.

"But Siri…"

"Get!" Sirius gave his brother a push, and Regulus stumbled out from behind the corner, turning once to glare at Sirius before straightening his t-shirt and falling into step behind Snape.

Bellatrix had not been hard to find after they had passed the Dementor-cloud; she was in a room with dark stone walls and cells lining the walls. It was decided rather quickly that Snape and Regulus, being former Death-Eaters, would talk to Bellatrix; still pretending to be on her side, of course, but they had to find out as much as possible about the spell before they could try to counter it. Sirius was all for destroying her right away, but Lily had reminded him that many spells had counter-effects that made it dangerous to just try to get rid of them on a whim.

The others were hiding around the corner, listening intently to the conversation that was about to take place.

"Hello, Cousin Bella!"

Sirius snickered behind his hand. Only Regulus could see that woman and pretend to be happy.

"Ah, Regulus, fancy seeing you here." The dark woman turned, a solemn expression on her face. She looked younger, as well, and much less deranged. "And Severus, what a pleasant surprise."

Snape's mouth twitched as he replied, "Bellatrix."

"I suppose you have discovered the marvellous spell my Lord cast before his horrible demise at the hands of that Potter," she sneered. "It is…pure genius, is it not?"

"Yes, although I am sure the Dark Lord wished he had more control over it; Fenrir, I am sure, was not his first choice to control the spell," Snape sneered, knowing he was taking a chance with revealing that they knew that but also knowing that Bellatrix would likely try to take all the credit for herself otherwise.

"Oh. You have seen him, then. Yes, it must be an honor for the beast; certainly none of the others of his kind have anything to look forward to in this life. Have you seen it, yet?" Her eyes were glowing with a crazed look.

"Seen what?" Regulus asked.

"Come!" She exclaimed, leading them over to where the floor seemingly dropped into nothingness. Growls and barks came from the pit, where the only light seemed to be a…Snape peered down interestedly…a _moon_, suspended in the nothingness. A horrible feeling crept over him and he asked, "Is that…"

"Yes, Severus! Behold, the beasts in the environment they deserve! Likely, they'll tear each other apart down there, but then, who would care? They are not human!" She cackled. "I wish I could throw your brother down there, Regulus; see what they make of him!"

000

"What are they talking about?" James whispered, trying to peer around the corner.

Lupin was frozen in place, knowing from the howls and from Bellatrix's gleeful tone what the creatures in the pit were. He shivered, but quickly tried to get his revulsion under control as the others turned to him.

"Moony…" Sirius started, but Lupin held up a hand to forestall him.

"It's fine. I daresay some of them…some of them were _not _human anymore…"

"But to have them turn on each other?" Fred looked repulsed. "Isn't that a little…cruel? I mean, you're a decent fellow, Remus. I would never want you to…"

"It's _fine_," Lupin repeated. "We can't do anything for them now."

He stiffened as Sirius put an arm around his shoulders, but knew that his friend was only trying to make him feel better.

"Ah, well," Bellatrix was continuing. "I suppose he got what he deserved," she looked content. Sirius tightened his grip on Lupin somewhat; his face was set.

"There's one in every family," Regulus shrugged.

"What?"

"You heard me, Bella. You know…your sister?"

"My _sister _befouls the name of the Noble House of Black even more than your stuck-up brother. Marrying a _Muggle!_" She looked revolted. "And you know she had a daughter?"

"Yes, Nymphadora," Regulus nodded.

"Indeed. Wait until you hear what _she _did. Married one of those," she pointed to the black pit. Regulus looked horrified.

"She didn't!"

"Oh, yes."

"But the Ministry…they don't allow _them _to marry, do they?" Regulus asked in a whisper.

"It was all very quiet, but they had a son as well. A son! Creatures like _that _should never be allowed to mate. They're a disgrace to the entire wizarding world. Thankfully, I took care of Andromeda's brat myself and Dolohov exterminated the half-breed," she grinned maliciously. "And that _husband _of hers…well, I hate to think what horrors await him in this life. It's rather well-known that dark creatures will _never _end up in…what do those dratted Muggles call it…oh, yes. _Heaven_," she sneered.

"And how wrong she is," muttered Sirius.

"But as for the spell, it is…unbreakable," Bellatrix grinned again. "After all, the only way to counter it is to destroy the souls in which it resides, and since the spell itself prevents movement, not even meddling fools like Dumbledore can try to reverse it!"

"It cannot be that simple to reverse, in any case," Snape began. "After all, the Dark Lord would never be so careless as to create a spell where destroying it would have no after-effects. Am I correct in thinking this?"

Bellatrix gave him a shrewd look, as if trying to figure out his intentions. But Severus Snape was one of the greatest wizards of his time, and the Dark Lord had trusted him explicitly. Therefore, he could not possibly be plotting anything. Her mind made up, she smirked at him before replying, "Of course there are consequences!"

"And they are…"

"Well, there are only a few ways to effectively destroy a soul. One would be to get it into that black cloud out in the hallway," she gestured, "and the other, at least in this world, would be to use Fiendfyre. Of course, a very limited amount of people know how to use that, as it, of course, is highly illegal. And chances are great that even if it worked, it would run rampant and destroy nearly everything else in its path.

"The other thing that the Dark Lord did to ensure maximum destruction if ever a soul was destroyed was that a vortex would be created that would destroy everything in the vicinity.

"And, of course, both keepers would have to be affected at once. If only one was, the spell would just transfer wholly over to the other," she finished, beaming triumphantly.

"In other words, it cannot be countered!"

"Interesting," Snape rubbed his nose with a thin finger. "It seems decidedly foolproof." He was about to say more when there was a particularly loud howl from the pit, followed by an obvious yelp of pain.

"What was that?" Regulus' eyes were wide.

"Nothing," Bellatrix waved. "And besides, who would really care if another of them was injured? Nobody I know."

000

"Except me," Sirius muttered again, a fire smouldering in his silver eyes. Lupin put a hand on his arm and gave him a warning glance, and Sirius responded by pulling the werewolf closer to him. "I won't let her hurt you, Moony."

"I know," Lupin replied softly. "It just…it's uncomfortable, knowing that something…whatever has transformed them is so close."

"Don't think about it," James put a hand on his shoulder. "You're nothing like them."

Lupin smiled weakly but did not respond.

000

"So, Bellatrix, is there anyone else around?" Snape was asking.

"A few. Most of them served the Dark Lord in life, of course; but then, this castle is so large that I have not seen many others," she replied. "And you, Regulus? I heard tell that you lost favour with the Dark Lord, yet here you are, at the place where only his most trusted advisors come," she raised an eyebrow.

"You've been listening to your brother-in-law for too long, then," Regulus smirked. "Just because I died an honourable death while I hear he scrambled like a coward doesn't mean that I lost favour," he replied smugly. "I'm shocked that the Dark Lord did not murder all of those who renounced him and then came crawling back on the spot, but I suppose that many of them have proved their worth."

"Indeed, although not as many as we had hoped. It was…difficult to recruit new members, what with all the lies and nonsense being spewed out by Dumbledore," she grimaced. "You did a good job with that, Severus. Getting rid of that meddling old fool."

Snape bowed slightly. "It was my pleasure," he replied.

000

Sirius snorted, clapping a hand over his mouth to muffle the sound. "I had no idea my brother and Snivelly were such good actors," he forced out between laughs.

"Of course, Pads. After all, Snivellus has been a double-agent for years," James pointed out. "He _had _to be a good actor."

"Yeah, I guess, but I never saw it. He was never acting around me; he _hated _me," Sirius replied.

"And you never gave him any reason not to," Lily hissed.

"Aw, Lils, he tried to hex me as often as I tried to hex him," Sirius waved a hand at her.

"Yes, but…" she cut off, realizing that the three around the corner had stopped talking.

"Did you…hear anything?" Bellatrix was asking.

"Nope," Regulus replied, seemingly unconcerned.

"Severus?"

"I don't believe so."

"Well, _I _did, and if they're skulking about back there, perhaps they are somewhere they should not be…" They heard footsteps moving toward them.

"Don't concern yourself, Bellatrix," Snape was saying, and the footsteps stopped. "I'll go check if you're that worried."

"Thank you for the offer, Severus, but I am _quite _capable of finding out for myself…" she started walking again.

The five behind the wall were frozen, until Sirius muttered a rather graphic curse word.

"Come on," James looked back at the hall they had come from.

"Where are we supposed to go?" Lily grabbed his hand. "The only way back is through the Dementors…"

"No," Fred said suddenly. "There's another way. I saw it…just after that cloud. It leads into a hallway."

"But she'll know," James' eyes were wide. "She'll know we went there if it's the only other way to go."

"Trust me," Fred replied. "I have an idea, and I know you don't know me that well, but trust me."

"He's right, Prongs. And his ideas are usually good," Lupin assured James.

"But that still leaves us the problem of…" Sirius paused as the footsteps stopped again; obviously Regulus and Snape were still trying to head Bellatrix off. "I mean, she _knows _she heard something, and I know Bella. She won't stop until she finds us."

"So what does that mean?" Fred asked.

Lupin glanced at Sirius, knowing instantly what his friend planned to do. "_No."_

"Moony…" Sirius started to stand.

"Sirius, you can't," he grabbed the other man's arm and pulled him back down. "Absolutely not. I've lost you too many times to have you go out and throw your soul away…"

The other had all figured out what was going on by this point, and they were staring at Sirius in shock.

"Moony, I have to," Sirius sighed, running a hand through his dark hair. "As Pads. Snape and Reg will cover for me, I'm sure, and that'll give you enough time to get away."

"But what if…the werewolves…"

"They can't destroy me, Remus."

"But they could bite you, and I'm not letting you deal with that," Lupin replied fiercely.

"No time," Sirius shook his head as the footsteps started again, more determined this time. "Trust me, Remmie."

He hadn't used that name since they were kids, Lupin thought. And when Sirius got an idea into his head…he nodded. "Be careful, Pads."

Sirius gripped his shoulder and nodded, winked at the others, and transformed into the black, shaggy dog. Prowling around the corner, he barked loudly and pranced into the room.

"Let's go," Lupin started back down the hallway.

They could hear Bellatrix's shout of surprise as they ran, but nobody seemed to be following them. That is, until Bellatrix let out a howl of rage and they could hear her pounding footsteps again. "_That was no dog!" _she shrieked.

As the black cloud loomed ahead, Fred gestured to a passage on the right-hand side. They all quickly turned the corner, and Fred pulled something out of his pocket and chucked it back toward the passage entrance. They could hear Bellatrix slide to a halt, and Lupin's sensitive hearing could tell that she was checking the walls for any hidden entrances, but after a few seconds she left again, and in the distance they could hear a yelp that was obviously made by a dog in pain. Lupin grimaced, turning back toward the hallway…only he couldn't see the hallway.

To anyone looking, it would seem that the dark cloud of Dementors had simply…expanded some more and filled more of the hall. The entrance to the side passage was obscured by a fog that was darker than night.

"Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder," Fred grinned. "See, Remus? Chocolate isn't the only thing that's useful to have around."

"Good going, Fred," James clapped him on the back.

"Could it be? A Marauder is _complimenting_ me?" Fred was positively beaming.

"Yes, well, we can't have thought of _everything," _James shrugged.

Lily cleared her throat. "Sorry to interrupt, boys, but we have more important things to deal with right now. What can we do?"

"Go back," Lupin replied. "It's too dangerous to stay here; we don't know who else is lurking around. Hopefully this passage will lead us back to the Vanishing Cabinet, and we can regroup back in Knockturn Alley."

"And just leave…"

"We're _not _leaving him," Lupin assured James. "Don't worry, Prongs. But we need to have a plan."

"Alright," James agreed with a nod, and they set off to come up with one.


	11. Back to the Real World

**Sorry about the long wait between updates, but because I'm not getting any reviews…it's hard to tell if anyone likes this story or if it's worth continuing. I actually put quite a lot of work into it, so don't be afraid to tell me what you think of it! **

**Disclaimer: It doesn't belong to me. **

**Chapter Eleven**

"Have you found anything yet, Hermione?"

Harry was leaning over her shoulder as she pored over some tomes in the library. A pile of books was stacked by her side, and yet another was placed on the bench across from her.

"A little, but nothing that will help," she sighed, slamming the book shut and raising a cloud of dust. Picking up the next book, she started flipping rapidly through it.

"I don't understand how she can even _read _that thing when she's going so fast. How can you pick up anything?" Ron asked, looking as though he would rather be anywhere but in the library.

"It's called _skimming_, Ronald. You look for key words," she replied, still not looking up from her book. "Aha!" She stopped, staring at the top of a page. "Look at this: Spells in the Afterlife." She began reading: 'Some wizards prefer casting enchantments or curses upon themselves or others that will only activate once the bearer or holders have died. These spells are incredibly difficult to cast and even more difficult to reverse. In fact, placement of these spells has been declared illegal by the Ministry of Magic, since many of them have effects that will destroy anything in the surrounding area if they are countered.'

"So…even if they defeat Bellatrix and Fenrir, they're still in danger?" Harry asked worriedly.

"It…seems that way. Do you think we should tell Dumbledore?"

"We'd better," Ron replied, and they headed back up to the office.

000

"So now what?"

They were sitting in the dingy café that Lily and Snape had discovered back in Knockturn Alley, and nobody had said a word for about half an hour. James finally broke the silence, although his voice was deathly quiet.

"We'll think of something," Lily assured him, placing her hand on top of his. "And I _know_ you have an idea, Remus. So out with it."

Lupin glanced up, shaking his head. "I do. But you won't like it. It involves…Peter."

"PETER!"

"Hush, James."

"Yes, Peter," Lupin repeated. "I know he's still around here somewhere, and he's the only one of us who can change into something small enough that could get close to Sirius without being seen. I don't think having a stag prance in there would go unnoticed."

"Remus, he's a bloody traitor! He as good as _killed _us! Why should we trust him?"

"Because of what he's done for me," Lupin replied. "We all know that he was not always evil."

"Heck, he lived with _us _for twelve years," Fred grinned. "And he slept in Ronnie's bed…" he snickered.

"Ew," James stuck his tongue out. "That's just…wrong on so many different levels. I guess I can pride myself by saying that I'm the only person at this table who _hasn't _slept in a bed with another man."

"James!" Lily gasped, although she was smiling.

"Brothers don't count," George grumbled.

"Remus?" James winked at him.

"Guilty as charged. But I'm inclined to say that Sirius doesn't count, either. I was doing him a favour. It's a canine thing," he replied.

"Yeah, we never slept in the same bed…I watched him at Hogwarts, he always flailed around in his sleep. I figured I'd end up with a black eye or something," James shrugged. "But Peter. You're sure?"

Lupin nodded. "We just need to find him."

"Which could be difficult. You can't imagine how many times he went missing when Ron was looking after him," Fred replied.

"Yes, I can see that happening," Lupin replied. "He always had a knack for getting out of tight spots."

"You should have eaten him when you had the chance, Moony," James muttered.

"Oh, stop with that already, James," Lily sighed. "But Fred's right. How are we going to find him?"

"Hmm…" Lupin thoughtfully tapped his chin. "Well, has anybody _else _discovered any food in this world?"

The others shook their heads.

"And how do you think dear Peter likes that?"

"Not very well. He was _always _eating," James replied.

"Exactly. So, keeping that in mind, would it not be plausible that if food were to suddenly appear, he would wish to consume it?"

"Speak English, Moony," James groaned.

"Of course he would," Lily elbowed her husband as she replied to Lupin's question. "But we have none at the moment."

"One of us could go back to Hogwarts and get some," Fred suggested.

"I suppose I'll do that, then," Lupin stood. "I fear I'm out of chocolate."

The other three laughed at this, and Lily replied, "We'll look around for him here. And maybe you'd better tell Dumbledore what' s been happening."

"I think you're right, Lily. I'll be back soon."

000

"So what can we do, Professor?"

"Hmm…" Harry, Ron, and Hermione had come to him with their discovery, and to tell the truth, it was much graver news than Dumbledore could have anticipated. He had thought it enough of a challenge to find Bellatrix and Fenrir in the first place, but the fact that even reversing the spell could have dire consequences was not a happy thought. "I am afraid that the others are no longer in the castle, so I don't see a way to warn them," he admitted finally. "With any luck, they will figure this out for themselves, and…"

"But what if they don't?" Hermione looked scared. "They could _all _get destroyed!"

"That is true, Miss Granger, but as I was saying…" He stopped as the door behind him squeaked open.

"Albus?"

000

The three in the Headmaster's study heard the new voice, of course, and Harry's heart immediately started beating faster in fear. Had something happened?

Dumbledore turned slightly to face the door, and then turned back. "I am afraid that you three will have to leave. It wouldn't do to have you see anyone else besides me."

"But Professor…"

"We're all trying to help!"

"Who's going to find out?"

Dumbledore winced as the three accusations hit him all at once. He had already broken the rules once where Minerva was concerned; it wouldn't do to break them again. Of course, Ron had a point. Who _was _going to find out? It wasn't as if some random old Headmaster could just Apparate into Dumbledore's office, at least in the present circumstances.

"Harry, Ron, Hermione. I want you three to understand something. When this is cleared up, you will _not _be able to talk to anyone else besides me. It is against whatever rules run the afterlife, because otherwise people would be talking to their dead friends and relatives all the time and, much like the mirror of Erised, it would consume them. I want you to promise me that you will never ask to speak to anyone else again. Do you promise?" He turned a stern gaze on them.

After a second's hesitation, they nodded. Dumbledore returned the nod, and then turned back around. "It's alright, you can come in."

000

Lupin closed the door quietly behind him; having heard the conversation Dumbledore was having, he had a fairly good idea of who was on the other side of the portrait, and Harry would not be pleased with the news of his godfather's present predicament. Taking a deep breath, he came forward so that he was beside Dumbledore and could see through the portrait.

"What did you want to speak to me about, Remus?" Dumbledore asked gently.

"R-Remus?" Hermione squeaked, and Lupin realized that they had never seen his twenty-year-old self yet, except in the odd photograph.

"Indeed. How are you, Hermione?"

"Fine." She still looked somewhat flabbergasted.

"Your voice is different," Ron cocked his head to the side, obviously musing over something.

"It is?"

"Yeah, it's…not as hoarse as it was," Ron supplied thoughtfully. "Don't you think, Harry?"

"Yeah, Ron. You're right." Harry hadn't really paid attention to it when he had used the Resurrection Stone, but it was definitely obvious. "You mean, you hadn't noticed, Remus?"

"Not really. But I suppose you would be right. My voice, as it were, changed forever after November 11, 1981. That was the first full moon after…well, let's just say that Moony didn't take it very well," he replied vaguely, noting the sympathetic faces of the teenagers before him.

Dumbledore was waiting patiently for Lupin to continue, and he decided that anything was better than reliving the horror of that night.

"As to what happened…we found them," Lupin started. "Or, rather, we found Bellatrix. Severus and Regulus went to speak with her, on the pretence of still being on her side, and we found out that…"

"That breaking the spell will be incredibly difficult," Hermione interjected. Lupin glanced at her in interest, and she blushed a little and added, "We were doing some research of out own."

"I always said you were the brightest witch of your age, Hermione," Lupin replied kindly, causing Hermione's blush to deepen.

"Thank you," she replied in a meek little voice, which caused Ron to glance curiously at her.

"What's up with you?"

She cleared her throat and waved an airy hand. "Nothing, Ronald." But Ron continued to glare, so she added. "Alright, then. He's cute, if you _must _know."

"He's…he's…" Ron sputtered. "Hermione, he was your _teacher!" _

"I _know_, Ron. But he's still handsome," she replied softly.

Harry glanced at Lupin and raised an eyebrow, causing Lupin to smile in response. Having just seen James, it was all the more noticeable how much Harry resembled him. "Well, well, Remus. You've got a new admirer."

"That's hardly pertinent," Lupin replied, although he _was _flattered that Hermione thought him handsome. He had had his fair share of girls look at him in school, that was true enough, but he had always ignored them because of his lycanthropy. "What has happened, Albus, and I daresay that none of you will be happy to hear it, but…" he sighed. "Bellatrix thought she heard a noise and came to investigate, and Sirius was convinced that she would not stop looking for us until she had found _some_thing, so he…he gave himself up," Lupin finished quietly, willing himself not to look at Harry.

There was shocked silence for a few moments before Harry roared, "He WHAT?"

"You heard him perfectly fine, Harry," Hermione replied, although her voice was far from steady.

"That…_stupid_…dog…" Harry muttered under his breath.

"What do we do now?" Ron asked, voicing what all of them were thinking.

"He doesn't think she'll try and exterminate him; not yet, in any case, and I doubt that Severus and Regulus will let her. Meanwhile, we're trying to find…" he braced himself for the onslaught of yelling this next comment would likely receive, "…Peter and get him to help us get Sirius out."

"PETER!"

"Yes, Harry. Your father made exactly the same comment about ten minutes ago. He's our best bet, because he can turn into such a small creature," Lupin explained patiently, his voice never rising above a conversational tone.

"Do you think that wise, Remus?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes. It's our only chance, I think. There is no doubt in my mind that Bellatrix will not take his reappearance kindly in any case, and I think his allegiance, at this point, is more for his old friends than for those who treated him as little more than a doormat," Lupin smiled wryly.

"I guess. He kept his debt to me, after all," Harry pointed out. "Just as long as it gets Sirius back safely."

"We will, Harry. Don't worry," Lupin assured him. "But we found some other interesting things, as well." He proceeded to tell them briefly about Knockturn Alley, the Dementor-cloud, and what Snape and Regulus had discovered. He faltered a bit when it came to the werewolf-pit, but decided that it was still important information. When he finished, there was once again complete silence.

"How horrible!" Hermione finally articulated, clapping a hand over her mouth. "So…I mean, if you _would _have been caught, then…"

"More than likely," Lupin replied evenly, his amber eyes stony.

"Blimey." Ron blinked before he tried to speak again, and came up with, "I…blimey."

"It's fine." It was amazing how often those words could come out in a day, Lupin thought. "Just…" he sighed, staring down at the floor. "Sometimes, I really hate what I am."

"Don't say that," Hermione said sharply. "Don't _ever _say that. I've told you already that nobody would ever have a right to be ashamed of you, and I'll say it again if I have to."

Harry, realizing that this conversation was getting nowhere fast, cleared his throat slightly and said, "I went to see Andromeda this afternoon."

"You did? How is she?" Lupin turned to Harry.

Harry grimaced in response. "Not good. Far as I can tell, she figures that it's _your _fault that Tonks died. Teddy seems to realize something's going on…he's real alert for being as young as he is." Harry hoped that the last bit sounded somewhat complimentary.

"What about his hair?"

"Oh…er…it was lime green when I came in, but when I was talking to Andromeda about…you know…it changed to…well, now that I think about it, it changed to almost exactly the same colour as your eyes, Remus," he finished.

Lupin smiled. "I'm glad he has you, Harry. I couldn't have asked for a better guardian. But I don't know what to tell you about Andromeda. True, Sirius always said that she was his favourite cousin, but bear in mind that she grew up in the same house as Bellatrix and Narcissa."

"That's true," Harry replied. "I guess I never thought of it that way."

"I should go," Lupin glanced back at the door. "They'll be waiting. I only came to get some food to hopefully lure Peter out," he explained. "If I don't see you three again, well…I want you to know that I care about all of you. And I know that you'll go on to do great things."

"Thanks, mate," Ron smiled, feeling somewhat more at ease calling Lupin 'mate' now that he appeared only a couple of years older. Hermione blushed again, and Harry nodded, although he and Lupin both knew that they understood each other far better now than they ever had before.

"Be cautious, Remus," Dumbledore warned. "I know you, and I know that you will do almost anything to get Sirius back, even if it compromises your own safety. And be careful of that Dementor-cloud as well; I do not like the sound of that one bit. If you ever need to tell me anything, send me a message."

"I will. Moony will handle it," Lupin assured him.

"Moony?" Harry, Ron, and Hermione asked. Lupin realized that even though he had taught Harry how to produce a corporeal Patronus, he had never used his own in front of them. He had never used it in front of anyone, really, because one look at Moony and anyone in their right mind would know that he was a werewolf.

Lupin nodded and pulled out his wand, saying the charm, and the giant silver wolf padded gracefully to the front of the portrait.

"He's beautiful," Hermione gasped. Ron gave her a sideways glance again, and she replied, "Oh, you know what I mean, Ron. Yours is a _terrier_." Harry snorted a laugh, which caused Ron to glare at him.

"I really have to go. I hope I see you all again in this life, but if not…" Lupin shrugged. "The afterlife's not so bad. Tell your family that, Ron. Fred's been invaluable; that Instant Darkness Powder saved us back there."

"I will. George'll be happy, I'm sure. He was the one who _insisted _on importing it from Peru."

"Right. And Hermione…well, I'm sure you and Ron will do just fine."

With a nod to Harry and a swift smile, he went back through the office door.

"He seems so much happier," Hermione sighed. "I always felt so bad for him. After Sirius died, he was always miserable."

"And he's cute," Ron scoffed.

"He _is! _Although, from what you've said, Harry…I _really _want to see what Sirius looks like…"

"HERMIONE!"

Harry stifled a laugh, thinking, as Lupin did, that things between his best friends were going to work out just fine.


	12. Storytime

**Hi! I know that nobody remembers me or this fic, but because somerdaye left me such a lovely review I thought that, since I've had this written for almost three years now, I would post the rest of this tonight (that's EIGHT chapters!) so everybody can read the completed story if they so desire. **

**I still love feedback, so let me know what you thought of it, even though I was just a young inexperienced writer when I finished this xP I just know that I had a blast writing this fic and I want to share the rest of it with all readers who want to know how it ended. **

**Thanks again for reading, and enjoy the rest of the fic! **

**~BregoArodShadowfax**

**Chapter Twelve**

_"Crucio!" _

Regulus winced involuntarily, making sure that Bellatrix didn't notice his discomfort. He had no idea that souls could feel pain, but he figured that a spell like Crucio would hurt almost anything it was used against, because it didn't leave any outward signs of torture. Souls couldn't bleed, but apparently they could still be in agony.

The black dog before him whimpered again and tried to curl itself into the smallest ball possible, but Bellatrix was relentless. Regulus remembered when she had tortured the Aurors, Frank and Alice Longbottom, into insanity. Could a soul lose their mind? Even after being in this world for seventeen years, there were so many things he didn't know and couldn't even fathom.

"Bellatrix, mindless torture is hardly getting us anywhere," Snape put in coldly, the ever-present sneer playing about his lips.

The woman gave him an evil look before turning back to the dog. "Make him change, then, Severus. I want to see him grovel," she growled.

"Alright, then," Snape drew his wand and pointed it at the dog, a jet of white light engulfed the animal and a few seconds later, Sirius was kneeling in front of them, his face twisted in obvious pain.

"Hello, _cousin_," he sneered, turning his grey eyes on Bellatrix.

"I'd watch my tongue if I were you, cur. You're in no position to be making threats," Bellatrix responded coldly.

"My, my, Bella. Little changed, are we? I must admit, I thought maybe dying would knock some sense into you, but I see I was sadly mistaken."

"What are you doing here, anyway?" Bellatrix looked down at her cousin. "This is where all those who were loyal to the Dark Lord go."

"Well, dearest cousin, seeing as how I was never actually killed with a curse; you stunned me and I fell back through the veil; it seems the normal death rules do not apply. I ended up here. Not that I'm enjoying myself, mind you," he added, brushing his dark hair out of his eyes.

"No, you certainly won't be enjoying yourself when I'm through with you," Bellatrix promised. "Or perhaps you were eavesdropping long enough to hear me mention that if I found you I'd let the wolves deal with you?"

Sirius laughed, although it was mirthless. "Really, Bella? Have you learned nothing? You think those wolves scare me? Well, they might frighten _you_, but bear in mind that one of my best mates is a werewolf," he replied scornfully.

"Yes, and I can only imagine what horror's he going through now that he's dead. Or didn't you know?" she smirked at Sirius. "Married your cousin, knocked her up, and then they both died."

Sirius was shaking with barely suppressed anger, and it looked as though he would have jumped on Bellatrix given the chance. "Don't you…_ever_…talk about Remus that way!"

"Oh, so you have _feelings _for the beast. Well, I suppose it makes sense…after all, only someone as despicable as _you _could ever love a monster," she bent down so they were level. "Maybe I'll go find him for you…so you can watch him suffer. That'd be amusing."

"Bellatrix," Snape started, pulling her out of her twisted reverie. "I am sure we have more important things to consider than the torture of Mr. Black and his friends."

"Yes, yes, Severus. You're right, of course. After all, if somebody like _him_ can get in, there's no telling who else would be able to. We'll have to search the castle."

Sirius looked at Snape with something almost like gratitude, but his scowl was back as Bellatrix turned on him again. "And as for you, little Siri…well, what do you think, Regulus? He's your brother."

"Oh, no, Bella. You do the honors," Regulus bowed; somewhat mockingly, although Bellatrix didn't notice. "Your ideas are _so _much more devilish than anything I could come up with."

"And here I thought that she couldn't think of anything without mouldy Voldy whispering it in her ear. Honestly, Bella, what you saw in him…I mean, Rodolphus was ugly enough, but being in love with a _snake_?" Sirius barked a laugh.

"ENOUGH!" Bellatrix roared. "What would you know of love, you ignorant beast? Nobody's ever loved you. I saw them when you died; nobody cared. Little baby Potter may have wanted revenge, but your so-called werewolf _friend _stopped him from trying to save you," she grinned again.

"Not true," Sirius growled. "And I think I can safely say that it's you, _cousin_, who knows nothing of love."

"Oh, little Siri. So naïve. Always running your mouth even when you're the one in trouble. Nobody's here to save you, so I think you'd do well to remember it. And don't worry about what'll happen; you have eternity to think about that," she continued with a sinister look in her eyes.

Sirius moved back a little, knowing that she was right. It was too risky for anybody to try and get to him; and who would? With little hope of help, he contented himself with growling at Bellatrix, who continued to leer at him before she moved forward.

"But before we do anything _more_…_Crucio!" _

000

The Rat could smell food. That was unusual; there was no food in this place. But his sensitive nose could definitely pick up the tantalizing aroma of cheese…fresh fruit…and copious amounts of chocolate. He loved food; all types of it, and all the more so because he hadn't eaten in months.

His desire to get something in his stomach overrode even his sixth sense that something was definitely fishy about this. The thought didn't even cross his mind, until a metal cage dropped down over him. He emitted a frightened squeak, looking up at two people who he hoped he'd never have to face again: the Stag and the Wolf.

000

"Genius, Moony. Pure genius. How'd you know he'd go for it?"

"Think about it, Prongs. He hasn't eaten for _months_. And we all know Peter didn't have the sharpest grasp on reality. He rarely thought of the meaning behind anything that happened," Lupin smiled. "Hello, Peter. Fancy seeing you again."

Keeping his wand aimed at the rat, he removed the cage, and a few seconds later Peter Pettigrew was cowering before them. "Wh-what do you want from me? S-Sirius said you'd leave me alone," he stuttered.

"We don't wish to hurt you, Peter. We just require your help. As a last favour…"

"To the Marauders," James finished. "You _do _remember the Marauders, right, Pete?"

"Y-yes. I-I-I…"

"Stop frightening him, James," Lupin stated.

"Right. Look, Wormtail, Sirius is in trouble, and we need you to go and find out where he is and what we can do to help," James cut to the chase.

"He gave himself up to Bellatrix."

"I don't like Bellatrix," Peter shook his head.

"We know. So who would you rather help, Pete? Remus seems certain that there's some good in you…some _Gryffindor _in you somewhere. Prove it," James leaned forward threateningly.

"O-okay…"

"That's not very convincing, Petey."

"Alright. I'll do it!" A hint of bravery and determination came into his watery eyes. "Just…can I eat the food?"

Lupin had to stifle a laugh. "I brought it for you, after all. Thank you, Peter."

"You have no reason to thank me," Peter looked down guiltily.

"True enough. And yet we are. Maybe you can learn a little something from that," James sighed. "You and me, Moon?"

"Indeed."

"Lily and Fred won't be happy…"

"This is a Marauders matter, James. Much as I hate to admit it, Lily's not really a Marauder. And neither is Fred, like us though he may be. It's time for Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs to run once more," Lupin grinned.

"And about time," James clapped him on the shoulder. "Ready, Wormtail?"

"Of course…Prongs."

James gave him an appraising look before nodding. "I still hate you, you know," he said quietly.

"I know," Peter looked ashamed.

"Good. As long as that's cleared up…let's go get Sirius back!"

000

"The _nerve _of them. _Marauders!_" Lily huffed, pacing back and forth in the café. James had told her to go back to Hogwarts, but she had bluntly refused, saying that if he thought her incapable of even staying in Knockturn Alley for a few hours, then he didn't really know her that well at all.

"Maybe it's for the best," Fred shrugged, watching the copper-haired woman. "I mean, it could get a little crowded with five of us, and it's easier for them to get out, being Animagi and such."

"Fred Weasley, from all I've heard of you, are you _seriously _telling me you'd turn down an adventure?" She smiled, finally going to sit down.

"Maybe dying has changed me. I know I'm not invincible; even though I think at one time I was convinced that nothing could hurt me. And I want to see George and the rest of my family again," he admitted.

"That's understandable, then. Did you have a girlfriend?"

"A what?" Fred chuckled. "Not formally. I mean, Angelina Johnson…she was a Chaser on our Quidditch team…we were pretty close. I asked her on a whim to go to the Yule Ball when we were in our sixth year and she agreed almost immediately. But that was the closest I ever came. George and I never really had time for girlfriends when we spent every free hour planning pranks."

"Ah, the Yule Ball," Lily sighed. "Since we have some time, would you like to hear about the fiasco that was _our _Yule Ball?"

"Of course! Anything to do with the Marauders is always entertaining," Fred grinned.

"Alright, then. It happened in our sixth year, as well. James was finally starting to act normal; and by normal I mean not hexing anybody who came into view just to show off. He stopped walking around with his chest puffed out like an absurd rooster, and he didn't shout at me every day to go out with him. I was starting to warm up to him; he hadn't badgered me for a few months; when he asked me to go to the Ball with him.

"I led him on for a while, of course, but I agreed in the end. The other boys were a little stunned that I had said yes, because that meant James would be with me and not them, but they were happy for him," she smiled at the memory.

"What about the others? Did they have dates?" Fred asked, his interest obviously piqued.

"Believe it or not, Peter got the nerve to ask a sixth-year Hufflepuff…I never really got her name, but they got along well. That was the biggest shock for all of us, I think. We all thought that Peter would rather die than have the nerve to ask a girl out to the Ball.

"Sirius, of course, had practically the entire school population coming up to ask him. I mean, in a normal year, he probably got about ten date offers a month, but since Dumbledore had announced the Ball, he was getting up to ten a _day_, and rather annoyed with it all.

"Eventually, he took to telling people that he already had a date, but then of course they would ask him who it was, and he of course did not have an answer. He considered telling them that he had no interest in girls at all, but James reminded him that then boys would start asking him, and that would make it horribly awkward," she laughed.

"So what did he do?" Fred leaned forward.

"He took the only real option available: he went with Remus. As a friend," Lily clarified, noticing how wide Fred's eyes were getting.

"And Remus didn't…"

"Oh, he was a little perturbed at first. The glares all of the girls and some of the boys shot him in the hallway spelled 'death,' plain enough, but Sirius stood by his word. It was a safe bet, because Remus would never ask anybody to go with him. Not that he wasn't attractive, because he very obviously is, but because he knew that he could never form a lasting relationship while keeping his lycanthropy a secret. The Ministry was starting to get _very _anti-werewolf at the time, and he wasn't really supposed to be at school anyway, so it was too big of a risk to reveal to anybody who might accidentally slip and tell somebody else."

"It must have been hard for him," Fred realized. "I mean, to me he was Professor Lupin and then he's just been Remus; I never saw him outside of school or the Order. He wasn't bitter about it, so I thought it wasn't such a big deal," he admitted.

"Remus is a rare breed, to be sure. Ignore the pun," she added with a smile. "He's too good-natured to let anything get him down for long, and even though being a werewolf hasn't been the easiest thing for him to deal with, he stands by what he's said from the beginning: it showed him who his real friends were. His true friends, and that's something that a lot of _normal _people can't say they have."

"So, he and Sirius went to the Ball?"

"Indeed. They made a very handsome couple, although both of them would kill me if they knew I said that. Sirius insisted Remus get new dress robes, but Remus wouldn't have any of it. Eventually, on the last Hogsmeade weekend before the Ball, Sirius just bought him some. They turned more than one head that night, that's for sure," she laughed. "Remus was positively mortified at all the attention, of course, but with Sirius being the social butterfly that he is, he got a lot of glances from the girls. Peter was a little jealous, I think. His date was always looking for Sirius and Remus."

Fred laughed along with her, feeling rather giddy. There was nothing he loved hearing about more than a good prank, unless of course it was a good story about the Marauders. And now he got to spend eternity with them. He liked Lily, too. There were a lot of similarities between her and Harry, just as there were a lot between Harry and James.

"You know what, Lily?" Fred smiled. "I'm not sad anymore…about dying. Not if eternity means spending time with all of you."

"Thanks, Fred. That means a lot to us. And you know that, as far as we're concerned, you're one of us anyway," she winked.

"Sure do. After all, you need some new blood in your little gang. Maybe I can come up with some tricks that even James and Sirius never thought of."

"I'm sure you can. I hope they're all right," she stated suddenly sober.

"Let's not think about that. Tell me some more stories. What happened after the Ball?"

"Well, the next day…"

Yes, Fred thought contentedly. Some things weren't so bad after all.


	13. The Rescue

**Chapter Thirteen**

"So? Did you find him?"

Peter transformed back into a human and nodded, looking around fearfully.

"And?"

"He seems okay," Peter awkwardly shuffled his feet. "I mean, he's chained up and gagged, but he was awake."

"Did he see you?"

"No. I made sure of that. And there was no sign of Bellatrix or anybody else," Peter assured them. "Can I go now?"

"If you want," Lupin shrugged. "Just make sure you go back the way you came…there's a black cloud in the other hallway that's made of whatever substance it is that creates Dementors."

Peter shuddered but nodded. "Well…goodbye."

"Goodbye, Peter."

"Yeah. See you, Wormy," James let out a resigned sigh as Peter transformed into the rat and scurried down the hall. "You're too nice, Moony. I wouldn't have told him about the Dementors."

"It's hardly fair, Prongs."

"Alright. Fine. Do you trust him? About there not being a watch?"

"I see no reason for him to lie, at this point. Maybe _you're _just too suspicious," Lupin jibed lightly.

"Nah. You know I'm perfect," James grinned.

"Of course, Prongs," Lupin rolled his eyes. "Let's go."

000

How he hated that woman! _Why _did they have to be related? He shook his head, trying not to think about hanging in chains for all eternity. Bellatrix had thought of everything. Of course he had tried to Apparate out of the cell at the first chance he got, or transform into Padfoot, but it seemed whatever charms were on the manacles prevented even that. At one point, he had thought he heard squeaking outside, but after a lot of hard listening dismissed it as hearing things.

At least, until Lupin and James turned up outside his cell. James pointed his wand at the door and muttered, _"Alohomora." _The lock snapped open, and they entered. Sirius' eyes were as wide as they could go. But then, he should have known that the Marauders would never abandon one of their own.

Lupin knelt down beside him, but Sirius shook his head furiously. Being unable to talk, he was trying to communicate with actions what he couldn't get across with words. Lupin gave him a questioning glance, reaching up to take the gag off. "Sirius, what's…"

"Silver, Moony. The chains are silver," Sirius got out. His voice was a little hoarse, and his body was still tingling from the after-effects of the Cruciatus Curse. He felt horribly weak, but he knew they had to hurry before Bellatrix or somebody else walked in.

"Let me, then," James walked forward, examining the manacles. They seemed to be made of a single band of metal, but James used a charm to carefully burn through the metal, which was surprisingly easy to do despite the fact that the chains were made of silver. It seemed the manacles weren't made of such strong material. "Can you walk, Pads?"

"Not likely," Sirius admitted, smiling ruefully. "Moony, I need to talk to you. Alone," he added, noting the hurt expression that came onto James' face.

"Pads…"

"Oh, fine. I'm in no mood to argue right now," Sirius consented with a sigh. "Let's just get out of here."

"You're heavy, you know."

"Remus can lift me."

"Yes, and you're still heavy," Lupin smiled, but he picked up the other man nonetheless and they moved into a nearby hallway. A door about halfway down led into a dark, storage-like room, and they entered and closed the door behind them.

"How are you, Padfoot?" Lupin asked quietly.

"I'll be okay. Just the Cruciatus Curse; you know how it is," he smiled, trying to downplay the situation.

"Pads, that's hardly a small thing!" James looked shocked.

"It would have been worse, but Snape intervened," Sirius admitted.

"Darn. He's really giving me good reasons not to hate him," James shook his head.

"Not important, Prongs. What matters is what she was telling me, because I realized that it was true. She…really doesn't like you, Remus. Or, rather, really doesn't like what you are," he turned to Lupin.

"That's hardly a new thing, Sirius," Lupin shrugged.

"No, I know that, but she was saying something about how only someone like me, somebody who had never known true love; not from a family, or a girlfriend, or anything; how only somebody as deprived as I am could ever truly have feelings or sympathy for…for a…well, to use her words, a _monster_," he finished with a slight sneer, but he soon heaved a loud sigh and ran his hands through his hair, a sure sign that he was uncomfortable.

"And...?" James prompted.

"And I realized that she was right. I _haven't _known love. My family despised me, and Reg and I were always coolly formal to each other at best; especially once I got sorted into Gryffindor. He was only eight at the time, so we never had a lot of common ground to stand on. Mum and Dad hated me, Bella and Cissy hated me, Dromeda was somewhat better but I never saw a lot of her. Once I got to school, I had so many date offers and other things that it turned me right off. I never once met a girl who didn't ogle me first and then ask me out. I hardly knew any of them, so I knew they couldn't like me for me. And then I figured that once I was out of school, I could spend time looking for a suitable girl, and…well, I don't need to tell you what happened, then," he finished drearily.

"No. But seriously, Pads, you can't take anything Bellatrix says personally. From what I know of her, it's her specialty to take what she perceives as somebody's weakness and use it against them," James said reassuringly, bending down to look at Sirius.

"You think so, Jamie? But what if she was right…"

"There are different kinds of love, Pads, and all of them are just as fulfilling. There's love between a man and a woman, between family, between father and son. And there's also a type of love called platonic love," he said quietly.

"Platonic? You've been listening to Moony too much," Sirius gave his friend a weak smile.

"No, it's important. It's the love between brothers, but not related brothers."

"You're confusing me, Prongs," Sirius shook his head.

"I mean, it's what happens between friends who are so close that they'd do anything for each other. And I feel that way about you," he assured the other man. "You know I do, Sirius. That's the oath we all took when we formed the Marauders, and oaths like that are incredibly hard to break. I mean, Peter doesn't count because none of us felt the same bond with him, but it's always been that way for the three of us. Just because you've never had a steady girlfriend or because your family didn't like you doesn't mean you haven't known love, Sirius. Look at Harry! From what I hear, he thought you were the best thing since sliced bread, and I'm inclined to say that I'm pretty sure my son has good judgment," James smiled proudly.

"Wow, Jamie. That's the longest speech I think you've ever made," Sirius grinned. "But are you telling the truth? You're not just making it up to make me feel better?"

"I'd never do that, Pads. Marauder's honor," James held up a hand as if he were swearing an oath.

"Thanks, James. And I'm sorry I tried to leave you out of this conversation, but I just thought…well…"

"Oh, come here already," James sighed, and the two embraced. "Don't ever worry about something like that again, alright?"

"Sure. Right," Sirius sounded like he was more convinced. "Moony?"

"I agree. And James is completely right about everything; there's hardly anything more to add. Although I resent the fact that she called me a monster; I mean, look at who's talking!" Lupin smiled, also kneeling down. "But there's something more, isn't there?"

"Yes," Sirius admitted, tearing his grey eyes away from Lupin's golden ones. "She said one other thing, and I need you to tell me if it's the truth. She said that…when I fell through the veil…nobody even noticed. She said that all of the Order members and the kids acted as if it were no big deal and I was no great loss. And I know you had to pull Harry away for his own safety, but…she made it sound as if even you weren't prepared to…" he paused, looking determinedly down at the floor.

"Oh, Pads. The reason that nobody 'noticed,' as you so bluntly put it, is because it happened within a matter of seconds. It was too quick to even comprehend, and it was completely quiet. There was no green light, which would have alerted the others, and we were all engaged in duels of our own. And the reason I held Harry back is because I knew. I had read all about the veil. Once you fall through, you're gone, and nothing will bring you back. How it happens is unknown, but that's why the veil still stands in the Department of Mysteries, and it has been there for centuries. I would have gone in after you regardless of the consequence, you know that, but I had to think of Harry. He had just lost one of the most important people in his life, and I knew that he would need me to be there…if only to talk to. Everything that woman says is a lie, or at the very least a vile and twisted portion of the truth. Don't you even dwell on it for a _moment_, Pads, because it's _not _the truth," Lupin vehemently assured him. "Alright?"

"So you love me?"

"Of course, you giant git. Haven't you realized that by now?" James shook his head. "Love you more than anyone…except Lily and Harry, but they take obvious precedence."

"Thanks, Jamie," Sirius rolled his eyes. "Remus?"

"I thought we weren't going to go over this anymore," Lupin replied.

"No, that's not what I meant. I told you I don't care what went on in your personal life. I just need to know…"

"I love you, Pads. After everything, how could I not? You've always been there, no matter what, and you've always been the first to defend me to anyone who decided I was sub-human because of my condition. I know you sometimes don't believe it yourself, but you've helped me in more ways than you'll ever know. Both of you," he amended, nodding to James.

"Now, now. We're just getting sappy," James reprimanded.

"Come on, Jamie. We can afford to be sappy once in a while," Sirius countered. "I'm sorry for ever doubting you, Moony."

"It's understandable. Just…don't do it again, alright?"

"Okay. But now we have a score to settle. And I daresay, Snape had better teach me how to use Fiendfyre, because I want to be the one to take down Bellatrix," he growled, the unmistakeable old fire springing back into his eyes. "But…ah…" he grimaced. "I think I still need some time to recover. Moony?"

"You know, you're lucky you've _been _such a good friend, because nobody else would do this for you," Lupin replied wryly, leaning down to pick up the other man.

"Did I ever tell you how much you mean to me?" Sirius asked sweetly.

"Perhaps, but trust me, I hardly need to hear it now," Lupin assured him, bending down to pick the other man up. "Where are Severus and Regulus? We need to find them if we want to plan out how we're going to do this."

"Right. Well, it shouldn't be hard," James grinned. "All we have to do is follow the trail of grease, and…" he paused as Lupin motioned him to be quiet. A few seconds later, he heard what the werewolf was concerned about; there were voices moving down the hallway.

"HOW COULD HE HAVE ESCAPED?"

"Calm yourself, Bellatrix. He was weak; he could not have gotten far."

"YOU…YOU…"

"Snape's right, Bella. Don't have a cow; we'll find him."

"YOU'D BETTER!"

They heard hurried footsteps rushing down the hall, and a moment later the door squeaked open.

"I have to admit," Snape said, stepping in. "You were quicker than I had anticipated."

"We had help," James admitted. "Peter proved he was still useful."

"So I _did _hear a rat!" Sirius looked up.

"Yes, that's how we knew the cell was unguarded," Lupin told him.

"We going, then? Before Cousin Bella decides to blow anything up?" Regulus asked.

"We should," Lupin agreed. "Let's get out of here."

000

"And _then_, he tried to…" Lily stopped mid-sentence as James pushed open the door of the café. "James!" She sprang up and ran over to hug him. "Oh, we were starting to worry!"

"We're fine, Lils. Everything went according to plan."

"James, move out of the door! Very sick man coming through!" Sirius barked, and James stepped aside so Lupin could carry Sirius over to a chair. "Ah…thanks, Moony."

"You're lucky spirits can't get muscle aches, or my back would kill me tomorrow," Lupin informed him, also dropping into a chair.

"I must say, I was rather impressed with the ease they pulled that rescue mission off," Snape said, mainly to Lily.

"So what have the two of you been up to?" James asked his wife.

"Oh, Fred and I have gotten along great. I was telling him stories about our school days. You remember the Yule Ball, James?"

"How could I forget?" James sighed, a dreamy look coming into his eyes. "Our first date!"

"Hardly a date, but Fred was talking about _his _Yule Ball, so I decided to talk about ours."

"_All _about ours?" Lupin looked slightly nervous as he shared a glance with Sirius.

"Of course," Fred grinned. "She said you made a cute couple."

"_Fred!" _Lily gasped. "You weren't supposed to tell them that!"

"What? Are we supposed to be ashamed?" Sirius looked around happily. "It was perfectly true. Still is, as far as I'm concerned," he winked at Lupin, who groaned.

"Pads, please. I've never been able to live down the looks some of those girls gave me that night. Those robes you bought me…"

"Were perfectly suited to you," Sirius interjected. "And I _noticed _when I stayed at your cabin that summer, that you still had them in your closet."

"Well…I…" Lupin sputtered, finally lapsing into silence. Sirius looked rather smug.

"As far as I'm concerned," James interjected, "You and Pads were second only to me and Lils."

"Thanks, Prongs," Sirius said, although he was obviously mocking. "I'm so happy to hear that."

"He's had trouble in this place, too," James informed Lupin. "You see, lots of former students came back to Hogwarts as teenagers or young adults, and apparently even spirits can have crushes, because several of them have flirted with our dear Padfoot."

``I thought dying would free me from it!`` Sirius exclaimed dramatically, nearly falling off his chair as he threw his arms in the air.

``Well, I think you`re healed, Padfoot,`` Lupin shrugged as Sirius tried desperately to keep his balance. The others all laughed at his antics, and even Snape managed a grim smile.

"Well, as touching as this scene no doubt is, I believe that there is something a little more important that we need to be discussing," he put in.

"You're right, Sev," Lily agreed. "So, how are we going to do this?"


	14. Confrontations

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Fenrir."

"Right. We haven't even seen him yet; and the real challenge is going to be getting him and Bellatrix in the same room," Lupin replied. "I know for a fact that they don't like each other. Bellatrix thinks of Fenrir the same as she does others of our kind, and he thinks that she's little more than Voldemort's lap-dog. I doubt they'll want to spend time together anyway, because they know that the spell can't be broken if they're apart."

"So we have a plan for this?"

"Not at the moment," Lupin sighed. "As far as I can tell, Fenrir only seems to have two weaknesses: children and women. And I'm not putting Lily out there as bait, because he's too unpredictable."

"Yeah, you should have seen Bill after he was through with him," Fred shuddered. "Even when he's not transformed, he still acts more animal than human."

"I don't mind," Lily shrugged. "I mean, as long as there's a way for me to get out."

"No, Lils. There's no way," Lupin firmly shook his head.

"Oh, come on, Remus. You've left me sitting behind like I'm some medieval maiden who can't take care of herself. I want to _do _something," she pouted, crossing her arms.

"I think if she wants to…"

"_No_, Pads."

"Jamie? What do you thing?" Sirius turned to James.

"Gentlemen, I learned long ago that it's fruitless to argue with Lily. If she wants to do something, she'll do it, no matter what anyone else says," he replied.

"Darn right I will," Lily smiled. "So? Please, Remus?"

"I still say no. You have no idea what he's capable of."

Sirius chose this moment to give an over-exaggerated yawn. "Is it just me or is it late?"

"It's not just you," James sighed, also looking rather weary. "What's the general vote? Back to the school?"

"Well, do _you _want to sleep out here?" Lily countered. "Besides, Remus has some things to think over. Don't you, Remus?"

"There's nothing to 'think over,' Lils. You're not doing it."

"I'll ask you again in the morning," she responded, grinned, and walked out of the restaurant.

"That woman can be so infuriating at times…" Lupin muttered under his breath.

"You won't consider it, then?" Regulus asked from where he was leaning against the doorframe; arms crossed against his chest.

"I don't see how I can," Lupin admitted. "If there's a way to instantaneously make werewolves transform, there is no way to tell if Bellatrix will use that to change him, and if he attacks and bites someone in that state…I'm not quite sure what will happen. As far as I'm concerned, I'm the only one who's safe if they're attacked by him, because it can't hurt me more than it has," he shrugged.

"I agree," Snape said suddenly. "There are far too many things that could happen that we know nothing about. It's hardly fair to her for us to put her out as bate."

"Look, _Snivelly,_ just because you still have feelings for my wife…"

"I don't want to see her get hurt, _Potter_. Are you saying that this mission is more important than her safety?"

"Of course not, but I…"

"Alright, gentlemen, break it up!" Fred stepped between them. "Arguing's not getting us anywhere; that's for sure."

"He's right," Sirius nodded. "I say that we think up another way to lure Fenrir in. Any suggestions?"

"Me," James said quickly. "You say he's more animal than human, right, Remus?"

"At the moment, yes."

"Then shouldn't his instincts be…animalistic as well? I mean, if a tasty deer were to turn up in front of him…"

"Yes, it would be tempting to a wolf, that's true. Do you think you can outrun him?" Lupin asked.

"If you're close," James replied. "Just in case, I mean."

"We will be. If there's one man I don't trust, it's Fenrir Greyback," Lupin's golden eyes narrowed.

"But what will your darling wife say, James?" Sirius asked with a grin.

"She'll say it's a lucky thing that I'm already dead, or she'd kill me herself," James grimaced.

"She would," Sirius agreed. "Y'know, sometimes I'm glad I never got bogged down with a woman. Not that there's anything wrong with Lils, but she can be a little…overbearing," he clarified, as James turned to glare at him.

"Yes, that she can be. But I wouldn't want to live without her. And you know what _I _think, Pads. I think a girlfriend would have been good for you," James countered.

"Oh, Jamie boy, I _had _a girlfriend. I was deeply in love with her, too; only woman I could ever count on."

"Erm…by the way, Pads…Hagrid crashed her in Tonks' parents garden," Lupin put in, before Sirius could reminisce about his motorbike any more.

"Hagrid…he _what?"_

"Yeah, when we were trying to move Harry…it looked pretty bad, but Arthur swore he would try to salvage the parts and rebuild it…you know him and Muggle artefacts," Lupin shrugged.

"He…my _Triumph!_" Sirius still looked shocked.

"Don't worry about it," Fred assured him. "Dad'll fix it up good as new. I promise you that."

"If I…_ever_…see Hagrid again, he's going to get a piece of my mind, you mark my words," Sirius growled, standing up and walking through the door, muttering under his breath all the way.

"Well…that didn't go over too well," Fred blinked.

"As he said, that bike was his one true love. I didn't expect him to love the news, but he had to know," Lupin responded. "But I think that he was right in one thing: it _is _getting late. And you have some news to tell your wife, Prongs."

"Unfortunately," James groaned. "But you're right. Let's go."

000

"Sirius?" Lupin entered the dorm room, somewhat surprised to see that Sirius had already crawled into the bed. "I thought you'd be eating in the Great Hall."

"Not hungry," Sirius grunted. Well, that was odd indeed.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes." He paused and then sat up. "No." He shook his head, and when he looked up Lupin thought that he looked horribly exhausted. "It still hurts, Moony. From the Cruciatus Curse, I mean. I can barely move."

"You've never had it used on you before, have you?" Lupin asked softly, moving over to the bed and sitting down.

"No. Never got caught like that. You mean, you have?"

"Once." Lupin's eyes were haunted. "It was after the full moon, so I was already horribly weak, but on the way back from the cabin I transformed in to my house, they ambushed me. I barely had enough sense and strength left to Apparate away; ended up at the gates of Hogwarts and luckily ran into Albus soon after."

"What?" Sirius looked at the other man in obvious shock. "When…why didn't I know about this?"

"It was about a month before James and Lily…" he cleared his throat. "When we weren't speaking to each other. But that night was when Albus realized that I wasn't the traitor, and his suspicions of you increased…as did mine."

"Oh, Moony…that must have been horrible."

"I was in bed for about a week," Lupin admitted. "The Wolf wasn't very happy with me at that time either, because I had driven my pack away, so I was pretty beat up as it was. But that's not important anymore," he smiled. "I lived."

"But barely. Do you know who did it?"

"No. They were wearing hoods," Lupin replied. "And then the next full moon, well…the Wolf really took it out on me."

"Remus."

"It doesn't matter," Lupin assured him. "I'm wallowing in self-pity again; I hate it when I do that."

"It's hardly self-pity when you've been tortured as badly as you're telling me," Sirius responded harshly. "And here I am whining about a few…"

"A _few_, Sirius? You couldn't even walk!" Lupin retorted.

"That's not…"

"Look, why are we even arguing about this?"

"I…dunno," Sirius admitted, shrugging. "But I _am_ truly tired. Coming to bed?"

"I had better," Lupin agreed, crawling under the blankets. "You're going to have nightmares, aren't you?"

"More than likely," Sirius replied quietly.

"Do you want me to…"

"Would you mind?"

"Not at all," Lupin assured him with a smile, wrapping his arms around the dark-haired man and pulling him close.

"How come you never have nightmares?" Sirius asked after a time.

"I did, when I was younger. But I've learned to accept what I am and what that means. As a human, I barely remember what it feels like to transform…I know it's painful, but part of that is psychological pain, because no matter how many times it happens, part of me still wants to resist turning into a werewolf."

"And after that?" Sirius pressed, having the strange feeling that his friend wasn't telling him everything.

"After I lost all four of you in one night, you mean? No, I never had nightmares. I was numb and in denial for a few months…Albus came to see me soon after, and I was staring blankly into the fire. I did that for hours on end, it seemed. When I finally shook it off and came to myself again, the grief wasn't nearly as potent as it had been. I suppose never really seeing any of it helped; I had only heard about it."

"I'm sorry…for that, I mean. If there's anything I regret about chasing after that rat, Moony, it's that I never considered _your _feelings. At that point it was obvious you weren't the traitor, but I never thought that Peter would take things so far…didn't think him capable of taking things so far," Sirius admitted.

"It's not your fault. In all likelihood, I would have responded in much the same way. Well, maybe not wanted to go out and kill him, but I would have definitely gone looking," Lupin replied.

"Do you think it was true, what James said? That a girl would have been good for me?"

"I think only you can decide that. And besides, who's to say that one can't find love in the afterlife?"

"True enough. There are certainly enough women who would like to be with me," he shrugged. "You think I have a chance?"

"There's always a chance, Pads. You just haven't found the right one, yet. Maybe someday you'll find somebody else who can ease your nightmares," Lupin replied soberly.

"Are you complaining?"

"Of course not. I just want you to know that when Tonks is back…if she comes back at the right age, we can't…"

"But you said before that…"

"If she's alright with it, Padfoot. I would never do anything that would make her uncomfortable, even if we're not sleeping in the same bed," Lupin replied.

"Oh." Sirius pulled away and turned his back on the other man, obviously sulking.

"Pads, don't do this. What I meant is that…"

"I know, Moony. But it'll hurt less if I just leave it now than if it gets taken away," he replied softly. "Good night."


	15. Planning

**Chapter Fifteen**

"Lily!" James hissed, trying to keep his voice down. "Lils! D'you have a camera handy?"

"What?" She came up the stairs and peeked into the dorm room, unable to keep a smile from gracing her pretty features. "Oh…here," she pushed the requested camera into her husband's hand. "They'll kill you, James."

"Or they would, if I weren't already dead," James shot back with a cheeky smile. "They're just too cute, don't you think?" He indicated Sirius and Lupin, the former had his head resting on Lupin's chest and they were tightly holding on to each other.

"Of course," Lily replied, chuckling slightly as James took the picture. Moving back, he somehow managed to bump into a large chest on the floor, creating a noise that was just loud enough to wake the sleeping werewolf.

As soon as his amber eyes snapped open, James hastily tried to stuff the camera away or make it disappear, but both efforts were futile and Lupin turned his gaze on the other man. "James, if my wife sees that…"

"She won't," James smiled. "I'll keep this baby on my person at all times."

"Is it morning?" Sirius yawned, starting to sit up. "Oh…sorry, Remus. I guess I just can't keep my hands off of you," he grinned, his mood seemingly much improved.

"Flattering thought that is," Lupin groaned, getting out of the bed. Moving to the mirror, he examined his reflection for a moment before saying, "Well, does anybody want to suggest something to wear? Yesterday went over well enough, but I daresay that that was all a fluke."

"Whatever you pick will be fine, I'm sure," Lily assured him. "You have a much better eye for fashion than you give yourself credit for, Remus."

"Well…I…"

"Come and show me after, Moony. I still have to go and see Dumbledore; tell him I got out alright," Sirius put in, giving the others a quick grin before he ran out of the dorm.

000

"I'VE GOT IT!"

"Oy, Hermione, keep it d…" Ron stopped as his girlfriend was already out of the library and making her way across the hallway. "Blimey. When did she learn to run so fast?"

"Beats me," Harry yawned. "What d'you reckon she's got?"

"Dunno. Something important, by the sounds of it. Probably gone to see Dumbledore. Think we should follow her?"

"Yeah. That'd be good. Besides…I want to hear if Sirius is okay."

000

"Professor? PROFESSOR!" Hermione called as she burst through the office door, only to find herself face-to-face with an empty painting. "Professor? Are you there?"

She thought she heard a slight scuffling coming from just out of sight behind the frame, so she asked again, "Is anyone there? Professor Dumbledore gave us permission to talk to whomever we would like until the spell has been reversed," she added, for good measure.

"Oh, Hermione. Always worried about breaking the rules," came the response, and an incredibly attractive sable-haired silver-eyed man walked into the frame. He couldn't have been more than twenty, and he carelessly swept his long hair out of his eyes in a graceful motion.

"I…I…"

"Yes, Moony told me how smitten you were with him…understandable, of course, but I hear you were somewhat anxious to see me as well. Is little Ron going to be jealous again?" The man barked a laugh.

And that laugh, more than anything, clued Hermione in and snapped her out of her daze. "S-Sirius?"

"Who else, darling?"

"I…wow…"

"So, Hermione Granger can be struck speechless after all. Wonder of wonders," he replied, although it was obvious he was teasing.

"But…you're alright, then. Harry was worried about you."

"I'm fine. Moony and Prongs made sure of that."

"And Peter?"

Sirius sighed. "Yes, the slimy git did his share as well. But I'd rather not speak of him. What did you want Dumbledore for?"

"I found something that will help you, I think," she responded, showing him the heavy book she was holding. "It's a spell: _animus annullo_."

"Soul destruction?" Drawled a cold voice from further on in the study, and Hermione involuntarily moved back a step as Severus Snape came into view. "I had heard about that spell, of course, but since it was only useful on a soul in its pure form, without the protection of a Horcrux, it was deemed rather unnecessary. I suppose that I had just forgotten about it."

"Yes, well, I suppose the book is accurate, Professor," Hermione hefted the book up so that Snape could see it.

"Most of the books in the library are," he nodded. "After all, I doubt Madam Pince would allow any false information to pass through her doors. Dangerous, perhaps, but nothing less than true."

"Her-mio-ne…" Ron panted, as he and Harry burst through the door. "What…what did you…"

"A spell," she replied, matter-of-factly.

"A useful spell," Snape sneered. "At least, we should hope so. But I should leave you four alone…no doubt you have some catching-up to do. I shall go look up that book and see what other information it can give us," he swept his cloak behind him and walked swiftly from the study.

"Git," Ron and Sirius remarked at the same time.

"Sirius!" Harry exclaimed, beaming at the smiling man in the frame. "You're alright!"

"Of course I am, Harry. Did you doubt it?"

"Well, Bellatrix has quite a nasty reputation," Harry admitted.

"True enough, dear godson of mine, but she's no match for the power of the Marauders," he replied. "Oh, and Ron, I'd watch that girl of yours…she has a bit of an eye for older men."

Hermione turned a furious shade of red as Ron groaned. "Oh, not him, too!"

"Oh, come on, Ron! Even _you _have to admit that he's handsome."

"Yes, Hermione, but…" Ron sighed and gave Harry a look that obviously implied, "Why do I even bother?"

Harry stifled a laugh as he turned back to his godfather. "So, you're going to be off again today, then?"

"Yes, and hopefully I won't have to give myself up again. I doubt Bella will be so merciful the second time," Sirius responded. "But if this spell of Hermione's actually works the way it's supposed to…how _is _it supposed to work?"

"Oh, you merely say the incantation and hold your wand out. It's essentially like the _Avada Kedavra _spell for souls. Apparently, it has the extra bonus of eliminating the vortex that appears when Fiendfyre is used, so it's not dangerous to be near when it's cast. Of course, it can only affect one person at a time, so two spells would have to be cast almost simultaneously to hit both Bellatrix and Fenrir at the same time," she cautioned.

"Oh, that'll be no problem. Remus and I seem to share thoughts a lot of the time," he shrugged. "Harry had to live with that the time he came to visit us through the fire."

"Yeah, kinda reminded me of Fred and George," Harry grinned at the memory. "You kept finishing each other's sentences."

"James says it must be a canine thing," Sirius added. "Lils just thinks it's weird, but she's learned to live with it. Was hard on her for a while, though, because although she and Moony have been friends since the beginning of Hogwarts, she didn't really start to like me until long after she and James were dating."

"So you want to do Bellatrix in yourself?" Harry asked, although he could hardly deny how much his godfather would want it.

"I'd love to. You may not know this, but she was also the one who killed Tonks," Sirius replied quietly. "I think it grates on her that she didn't actually kill me, and given the chance I know she'd love to get rid of me once and for all. I just hope I can pay back the favour in kind."

"And why would Remus want to get rid of Fenrir so badly? I mean, I know that Fenrir's evil, but don't they share some kind of…werewolf affinity?" Ron asked curiously.

"You mean, Harry's never told you?" Sirius looked confused.

"Told us what?"

"That…Fenrir Greyback is the reason that Remus is what he is," Sirius said. Ron and Hermione looked visibly shocked. "Remus is a half-wizard, you see. His mother was a Muggle, and his father worked at the Ministry. Back in those days, regulations and prohibitions on werewolves were really starting to take off, and his father was one of the people who made up some of the more…severe laws regarding werewolf policy. Needless to say, Fenrir was unhappy with some of the rules, even though some were not all that bad. I think Fenrir was most broke up over the one that condemned to death any werewolf who intentionally bit another person. He threatened Remus' father to scrap the law, promising to get him back if he didn't listen. Remus' dad laughed it off and went ahead with passing the law, and as revenge…well," Sirius helplessly spread his hands. "Fenrir was dead under the law, but he never dared show his face again. Of course, after that, his father tried to amend some of the more forceful laws as best he could, but both of them were mysteriously killed only the year after Remus left Hogwarts. There was never any proof, but since his father was also writing punishments for Death Eaters, there's not much to be left to the imagination," Sirius shrugged.

"Wow," Hermione breathed softly. "I had no idea…you _knew_?" She rounded on Harry.

"Not all of it. I only knew that Fenrir bit him because he was mad at his dad. But he never told me why," Harry protested.

"Siri, we have to go." Hermione glanced back at the portrait again as another man…boy, really…entered. He was only sixteen or seventeen at the most, although it was blatantly obvious that he was related to Sirius…although not nearly handsome enough to affect her the way that Sirius and Remus had.

"When's Dumbledore coming back, Reg?" Sirius asked offhandedly, not turning around.

"He just went down to the Great Hall to see everyone off…and get some more lemon drops. He was complaining that his bowl was empty. Who're you talking to?" Regulus moved into the frame. "Ah. You must be Harry Potter. I've heard a lot about you."

"I am," Harry nodded. "I guess I should thank you for trying to destroy that locket, although it would have been much more useful if we had found out before we went and got the fake one," he added.

"Yeah, sorry about that, but it wasn't like I had a chance to tell anyone after the Inferi got hold of me," he shuddered. "That was horrible."

Hermione looked at him in sympathy. After hearing so much about Regulus, both good and bad, it was interesting to finally meet him.

"Oh, and Siri, you'd best get down to the Great Hall. Lily's telling Fred stories again."

Sirius groaned. "Oh, what this time? Still about the Yule Ball?"

"Nah, she's moved on to what happened after you left Hogwarts. You know, with the apartment…"

Sirius growled. "Now _that's _overstepping some boundaries. Where's Remus?"

"In the Library with Severus, I think. He was heading that way when I came here."

"Oh, fine. Look, sorry guys, but when Lily gets started…sometimes things come out that have no right to be said. She _already _blabbed about what happened sixth year at our Yule Ball, and…"

"And what happened sixth year at your Yule Ball?" Ron asked interestedly.

"Oh, never mind. You're as bad as your brother," Sirius mock-glowered. "But really, we have to get going. Coming, Reg?"

"In a minute. You go head Lily off before she tells Fred something you _really _don't want him to hear," Regulus grinned.

"Right. I shall see you all later…hopefully. And if not, well…enjoy yourselves. Hermione, keep Ron out of trouble. Ron, keep Hermione away from her books. Harry…well, you'll figure it out as you go," he grinned and waved before turning and dashing from the study.

"So…what about Sirius and the Yule Ball?" Ron turned to Regulus, who smirked in response.

"Well, it's like this…"

000

"You told them."

"They asked."

"You _still _told them!"

"They _asked!"_

"SHUT IT!" James yelled, covering his ears.

"Really, Pads, it can't be that big of a deal. What did he tell them?" Lupin looked vaguely amused.

"Oh, about the Yule Ball," Sirius mumbled.

"Sirius, you hardly cared yesterday what people thought! In fact, you seemed rather proud of it."

"Yes, but that didn't mean my _godson_ and his lovebird friends had to find out!" Sirius exclaimed.

"There's no shame in it," Lily grinned.

"And what _exactly _were you telling young Mr. Weasley about me, anyway, Lils?" Sirius turned to her.

"Nothing important. Just what happened after we all left school. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?" She blinked innocently.

"You're horrible, you know that. You're wife's horrible, Jamie," Sirius moaned.

"No she's not," James shook his head, grinning. "Oh, d'you want to see the picture I…"

"NO." Sirius got up and stalked away from the table. "Where _is _that Snivellus? I want to get going!"

"Bit of a touchy bloke, isn't he?" Fred commented once Sirius was out of earshot.

"You should have seen him last night," Lupin sighed. "We got into a bit of an argument, but he seems to have forgotten about it already…not that that's any great surprise," he added.

"None at all. He won't talk about it, then?" Lily asked.

"Not more than what he already has," Lupin replied. "I told him that if Tonks wasn't comfortable with our sleeping arrangements, it would have to stop."

"And he got mad at you. Typical," James rolled his eyes.

"Really, James. How would I feel if you slept in the same bed as another man every night?" Lily inquired.

"It shouldn't matter if that other man is Sirius. And besides, it's for his nightmares," James retorted.

"Also, Lily, Tonks and I don't have quite the same relationship that you and James do," Lupin pointed out. "However, I would still respect her wishes in the matter."

"And that's as it should be," Lily replied with a firm nod. Then, her expression softened. "He still has nightmares, huh?"

"Almost every night. And after what happened yesterday…"

"Alright, people, let's move out!" Sirius had come back in, followed by a scowling Snape, and they all headed off toward the portrait of the fruit bowl.


	16. Setting the Plan in Motion

**Chapter Sixteen**

"Have you told her yet?"

"No, of course not…"

"Jamie!"

"Well, what was I supposed to say? She'll kill me! You know that."

"You can't avoid her, Prongs."

"Watch me…"

"James? What is it?" Lily turned around to where James, Lupin and Sirius were whispering frantically to one another.

"Jamie-boy here has something to tell you," Sirius responded, clapping James on the shoulder.

"You do? What is it?"

"Well, Lils, you know how last night you said that you wanted to be the bait? Well, I thought that maybe…"

"Wait. _You _thought that you would take my place by pulling your fancy Animagus stunt and hoping that it would work. Well, I've got news for you, Potter. It won't. We know that he'll follow me, but who knows if your little trick will fool him for a minute? After all, Remus never attacked you when you were a stag…he knew better. So what if it doesn't do anything? I've just sat around here like some useless little girl, and I think it's high time that I get to prove myself!" she finished, crossing her arms.

"But, Lils…"

"No buts. I'm doing this. You can all be there to backup me the same way you would be if it were James," she commented stubbornly. "And I won't take 'no' for an answer. You should know that by now."

"Alright," James sighed. "Fine. But we'll be close."

"Good." She nodded, a smile coming back to her face. "I'm glad we're agreed."

000

They had come back to the hall that Fred had discovered, and were presently hiding once again in the storage room. "So now what?" Regulus asked. "How do we find this Fenrir? And how do we get him and Bella in the same room?"

"I think the best thing for us to do is find Bellatrix first," Lupin replied. "She won't be happy with you and Severus, not when you couldn't find Sirius and bring him back, but I'm sure you can come up with some decent excuse." He turned to Snape, who nodded. "Keep her occupied in one room, and the rest of us will go after Fenrir, and hopefully lead him back. After that, Sirius and I will take care of the rest."

"You feel the two of you deserve to play the heroes?" Snape asked.

"I think we have the most right, yet. Those two pretty much ruined our lives," Lupin replied. "If anybody else would like to, I would advise them to speak now…"

But nobody said anything, not even Snape. Fred, however, looked up and said, "But shouldn't we test this spell first? What if it doesn't work?"

"Excellent idea, Fred. I'm glad I thought of it," Sirius replied with a cheeky grin. "Alright…here goes…_animus annullo!" _A jet of silver light shot out of his wand toward the wall, and he quickly tried to stop the spell before it decided to go after anyone in the room. The light disappeared quickly and Sirius lowered his wand. "Well, it works. Easy enough. Let's just hope it does what it's supposed to."

"Right. Let's go find Bellatrix," James said with a grin.

000

That proved easier said than done, it seemed. The castle was indeed large; nearly as large as Hogwarts. And every corridor was dark as night. Coming to the end of another hallway, Lupin's extra-sensitive hearing picked up a voice down the hallway. Holding up a hand to stop the others, he motioned silently for them to douse the lights on their wands. James and Sirius gave him questioning glances, but they did as they were told. Lupin could see well enough in the dark, and the others all moved back a bit when he turned back to them, because his eyes glowed something fierce in the pure blackness.

Moving around the corner, he clenched and then opened his fist, the dull blue flames appearing and revealing a bit more of the hallway. From that and by listening to the complete silence, he could see a door in the corridor, and the angry mutterings of Bellatrix Lestrange coming from behind it. She was evidently alone and just talking to herself, but at least they had found her. Coming back to the others, he strengthened the flow of magic and the brightness of the flames increased. It was only after he looked around at the others that he noticed they were once again staring at him in amazement.

"How…how…" Fred forced out.

"How what?" Lupin asked, slightly raising an eyebrow.

"That," Sirius pointed. "You never told me you could do…that."

"What?"

"_Wandless magic_," Sirius hissed.

"Oh," Lupin blinked. "And?"

"That's highly advanced," Snape replied. "It takes years of practice, and even then…many advanced wizards have problems with it. The Dark Lord himself had problems with it."

"Really?" Lupin shrugged. "Well, I can't do much else without my wand, but it's not like I ever practiced that. It just…seemed to come naturally. The first time I ever really used it was when I was on the train to Hogwarts and that Dementor showed up."

"Well, it's certainly useful," Snape responded. "I can do a fair bit myself, but it took me years to master it. Perhaps it has something to do with what you are; that you already have a magical creature living inside of you. Your eyes…"

"Yes, sorry if I startled anyone," Lupin apologized. "It's only a few days until the full moon, though, and the Wolf tends to become more prevalent in my actions. My eyes tend to glow in the dark. But I though you two at least would be used to that," he turned to Sirius and James.

"I forgot…it's been so many years," James shrugged.

"Yeah, and I…I've never seen them glow like _that _before," Sirius pointed. "It's like looking at a pair of disembodied eyes!"

"Sorry for freaking you out then," Lupin rolled said eyes. "But Bellatrix is beyond that door. I don't know where it leads, but that's up to the two of you to find out," he nodded to Snape and Regulus. "The rest of us will search out Fenrir…lucky it _is _so close to the full, because the Wolf can smell out a fellow lycanthrope easier than I can…and meet you back here if all goes well."

"And if it doesn't?" Snape asked.

"Use the spell. I know it may transfer all of the power over to Fenrir, and he may then be impossible to stop, but at least we'll only have to worry about him. There's one of him and seven of us…I think our chances are fairly good," Lupin replied.

"Alright," Regulus nodded. "Be careful, you guys."

"You as well," Sirius replied, affectionately ruffling his brother's hair. "Take care of yourselves."

"We will," Regulus assured him.

000

"Close?"

"Close."

"How close?"

"Close enough. Be quiet."

"Moony…"

"Padfoot…"

"Sirius, leave him alone."

"Yes, oh mighty Lily."

"You know, sometimes it's _really _obvious why I used to despise you."

"You used to despise James twice as much."

"Your perception of reality is seriously skewed, Pads. Look who she married."

"Yeah, well, I hope your antlers fall off."

"Pads!"

"Shut up, already!"

"Sorry, Moony."

The darkness was once again illuminated by the flickering blue flames. "He's near. I can't say where exactly, but it's awfully hard to hear with the rest of you making a racket!"

"But I didn't say…"

"Except for you, Fred." Fred grinned. "Look, I think it may be best if just Lily and I go from here. The rest of you stay together and stay here, so we don't have to look for you on the run. I don't want this to be any harder than it already is," Lupin said in an undertone. "Understood?"

"You're the boss, Moony," James shrugged. "Don't hurt yourself, Lil."

"You, James Potter, worry too much," she kissed his cheek. "I'll be fine; I've got Remus."

"Alright," he took her hand and gave it a quick squeeze. "Go, then."

Lily gave him a parting smile before the two went off down the hallway.

000

"Hang on a minute," Lupin put a hand on Lily's arm to slow her progress.

"What is it, Remus?"

Lupin turned the light into a side corridor branching off of the main one. "This way," he said quietly. The two went down for a little way before the corridor opened up into a room, although it was presently unoccupied. A single door stood at the far end, Lupin could tell that Fenrir was behind that door. "He's back there," he nodded.

"How do we get him to come out?" Lily asked. "I don't like the thought of traipsing in there."

"Improvise. Pretend you're lost or something, just make a lot of noise. I'm going to turn the light out and be back in the corridor. And be fast, because he is," Lupin warned.

"Don't worry," she grinned. "Leave it all to me."

000

"Stop pacing, Prongs," Sirius leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. "That's not going to help anybody."

"I know. I know!" James exclaimed, although his pacing did not stop or even slow.

"Well, run yourself into the ground, then," Sirius shrugged, turning to Fred. "Now, Freddie, what exactly was Lily telling you about what happened after we left Hogwarts?"

"Oh, nothing bad, if that's what's worrying you," Fred assured the dark-haired man with a grin. "She just told me that since your family disowned you and Remus' parents were mysteriously killed, leaving him with practically nothing, that the two of you moved in together. And you drove him crazy," Fred added with a grin.

"I did not!" Sirius shook his head and glared at Fred. "Remus and I got along perfectly well! Of course, he watched over me like a mother hen. Bloody annoying, that was. 'Sirius, don't go out on that flying deathtrap! You'll get yourself killed!' 'Sirius, were you drinking last night? I'm not making you a potion to help your headache!'"

"Sounds like Remus, all right," Fred agreed.

"But then, Dumbledore immediately assumed that Remus would take me in after I went to alert the Order after Harry's fourth year, even without asking him. And then he moved in with me at Grimmauld Place for the year because I despised being shut up _and _alone in that horrid place," Sirius involuntarily let out a shudder. "I admit that I was a little nervous when I showed up on his doorstep that day, because after all, for at least a few months before Lily and James were betrayed, Moony and I were more or less bitter enemies. We had it out one night…accused each other of being Voldemort's spy and all, and I admit that I made a few…less-than-complimentary comments about his condition. I believe I committed the practical sin of calling him a 'half-breed.' At any rate, he left and went to live in that little cottage in the woods where he was from that time on, and I was sulking for the next four months.

"After all, we hadn't had a lot of time to catch up in the Shrieking Shack that year, and while I knew that he forgave me for everything, that didn't necessarily mean that he was ready to jump in and let me live with him again. Of course, this is Remus John Lupin we're talking about, so I really didn't have any cause to worry," Sirius shrugged, his half-lidded eyes still following James, who had slowed down while Sirius was talking. "All right there, Jamie?"

"Fine," James sighed and sank down beside Sirius. "If a soul could die of anxiety, I would have died about ten times over," he groaned and buried his face in his hands.

"Oy, Prongs, don't go all soft on me, mate," Sirius sidled away from the other man.

"Oh, you're a fat lot of help, Pads," James snorted, drawing his knees up and resting his head on them.

"Ah, Jamie, you have to realize that our dear Moony would never let us down. Trust me," Sirius moved back over.

"I know he wouldn't. But he's not infallible, Sirius! What if something goes really…wrong? What if…" James cut off, heaving a sigh.

"It _won't, _James. Alright?" Sirius glanced over at Fred and rolled his eyes. "Believe me, mate, be _thankful_ you'll never get married. It turned you into an old man in no time."

Fred nodded, sharing a smile with Sirius as Sirius turned back to look at James. "Oh, come here already, you great prat!"

James looked up at the other man and quickly moved closer, allowing Sirius to wrap him in a firm embrace. Fred glanced at them somewhat wistfully, knowing that, honorary Marauder or not, he would never be as close to the others as they already were.

"Oh, don't you start, now!" Sirius warned, motioning Fred over. After a moment's hesitation, Fred also scooted closer and Sirius slung an arm around his shoulders. "Well, don't we make a fine sight," he chuckled, and soon all three of them were laughing.


	17. Getting Lucky

**Chapter Seventeen**

"Damsel in distress, damsel in distress, damsel in distress," Lily muttered to herself as she cautiously went into the room. "Come on, Lils…" She froze as Fenrir Greyback looked up. He truly was animalistic; the wolf was prevalent behind his yellow eyes in a way that she had never seen it in Lupin before. While Lupin's eyes were the same basic colour, they were warm and inviting; their golden colour reminiscent of sunshine on a warm fall day. Fenrir's were just…evil. Taking a deep swallow, she walked forward, trying to look tentative. Which wasn't hard, really, because she was hardly confident at the moment. "Um…h-hello?"

Fenrir growled. "Now, what have we here? Such a pretty girl to be wandering around a place like this alone…" he bared his teeth.

"I…I don't think I belong here. I must have…taken a wrong turn or something," Lily's eyes darted around nervously. "Can-can you help me get back, sir?"

"Why, of course I can, my dear…" he moved forward, looking somewhat out of place walking on two legs. "Now, if you'd just come a little closer, we can get you back where you belong…"

Lily closed her eyes as he approached her and let out an ear-piercing shriek. Fenrir involuntarily cowered back, the sound even shriller than it would have been to a human. Without waiting to see any more, Lily ran out into the hall. "Alright, let's go, let's go!" She grabbed Lupin's hand and they tore down the hall. Racing out into the main corridor, they slowed down enough to alert the others of their presence. Lily took one look at the three men and her voice was raised to a shriek once more. "YOU'RE HUGGING?"

"Oh, dang, Prongs. She's riled now. I think we have more than Fenrir to run from," Sirius quickly stood up.

"Lily! You're alright!"

"Did you have NO FAITH AT ALL IN ME, JAMES POTTER?"

"Come on, there's no time to argue now. You can fight it all out later," Lupin said evenly. "Let's go." He glanced over at Fred, who nodded and took off running. "Go, now!" James grabbed Lily's hand and pulled her along before she could start yelling again, and Lupin and Sirius exchanged a glance. "You and me, Pads?"

"Always," Sirius returned, and a few moments later Lupin was standing with a large, shaggy black dog. It was only mere moments before Fenrir came into the hallway, looking more deranged than ever.

"YOU!" He pointed a hand at Lupin.

"Yes, me. I thought you'd be happier to see somebody whose life you effectively ruined," Lupin spat, feeling his own wolf starting to rise within him. Padfoot whined and nosed at his hand, reminding him not to lose control, and he clenched his fist and shot a tight-lipped smile at the other werewolf. "You want a chase, Fenrir? Because we'll give you one," Lupin backed up, turning around and then dashing toward the room where Regulus and Snape were keeping Bellatrix occupied. After only a few feet, he sensed that something was wrong, and he turned around to find Fenrir grinning evilly at him but not moving. "So the girl was a distraction."

Lupin said nothing.

"And I suppose you and Mr. Black there think to lead me somewhere and into some kind of trap, is that it? Well, I assure you that I won't be fooled so easily. Nice try, Remus, but remember that the teacher is always one step ahead of the pupil," Fenrir crossed his arms.

"Teacher?" Lupin snorted, chuckling wryly. "Oh, Fenrir, if you've taught me anything, it's that acting like you is the reason that werewolves are so feared. So I suppose I should thank you, really, because if it wasn't for you, I may have ended up a monster, too."

"Smart one, aren't you," Fenrir backed up. "But not smart enough to catch me." With another malicious grin, he disappeared.

"Well, that worked remarkably well," Lupin sighed and sat down on the ground. Padfoot whined again and lay down, resting his head in the other man's lap. "Don't worry, Sirius. We'll figure something out."

"What happened?" James, Lily and Fred came back around the corner.

"He didn't figure us out, did he?" Lily looked afraid of the answer.

"Yes, unfortunately," Lupin grimaced. "But we should go back and check on Severus and Regulus."

"But what do we do now?" Fred asked. "You don't still expect for Snape to use the spell on Bellatrix, do you?"

"I would hope he would not. That was only to be used as a last resort, and I for one do not feel like dealing with a supremely powerful werewolf at the moment," Lupin sighed.

"No, I don't think any of us are," James admitted. "But we need some way to warn Snape and Regulus to get out of there."

"Unless of course we can get out on our own," a cold voice behind James drawled.

"Bella had 'urgent matters,' to attend to," Regulus added with a shrug. "What does that mean?"

"It means that they know we're here, and they know what we're up to…at least, they know we're up to something," Lupin replied. "We need to watch our step from here on out…I don't think they will be nearly as merciful as they were to Sirius if they ever catch us again. Bellatrix, at least, knows how to use Fiendfyre, and I wouldn't be surprised if she had ever heard of this _animus annullo _spell as well_._"

"So what do we do?" Lily asked. "Trust to luck?"

"Luck is about all we have left. Unless it would be possible to brew up a very quick batch of _Felix Felicis?" _Lupin turned to Snape.

"Possible indeed. But we would have to head back to Hogwarts at once. I think that staying around her longer than necessary is beginning to get hazardous to our health," Snape returned.

"Agreed. Let's get going," Lupin stood up, Padfoot wagging his tail in acquiescence before transforming back into a human.

000

"Having problems?" Dumbledore looked up from his place at the table in the Great Hall, where he was presently deliberating on the best way to fill up the candy dish that was ever-present in his office.

"More or less," Snape also sat down. "I've got a vat of Luck Potion brewing in the dungeon; hopefully it will be something they will not have thought of using."

"Isn't that playing somewhat dirty, Severus?" Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, although it was obvious that he was amused.

"Perhaps. It was Remus' idea."

"Really now? Perhaps being dorm-mates with Sirius and James for seven years rubbed off on him after all. Of course, I would have suggested the same thing myself; better to be safe than sorry, in this case. And it would hardly be unrequited; I daresay Bellatrix and Fenrir did not get where they are by 'playing nice,'" Dumbledore smiled, picking out a few more lemon drops for his bowl.

"Indeed. I have never known Remus to hold a grudge quite the way he is now," Snape replied.

"And since when has he been 'Remus' to you, Severus?" Dumbledore glanced up again.

"Oh…yes, well, we have seemed to have reached an understanding. I suppose I never had anything against him personally; it was more to do with who he chose for his friends and also because, for several years, I believed him to be a part of that little prank that Black pulled," Snape explained. "Black and Potter still despise me, I think, but Remus tends to keep them in check when he's around."

"Well, I am glad the two of you, at least, are no longer feuding. And Sirius and his brother…?"

"Are on friendly terms. In short, there are no major problems that could hinder our completion of this mission."

"Good, good. That's what I had hoped would happen, but there are always unexpected circumstances. Well, good luck, Severus…although I doubt you need me to give you luck." Dumbledore winked and walked out of the great hall, carrying his candy bowl with him.

000

"You _are?" _Hermione looked aghast. "But that…that's like _cheating!" _

"It's hardly cheating, Hermione. It's not a sporting event, or a test, or an election…" Sirius paused, obviously thinking about something. "And I think those are the only terms on which it _can't _be taken. Besides, is Kingsley going to send out a pair of supernatural Aurors to arrest us?" He grinned. "Even if he did, I think we could take them on. James and I could have been Aurors ourselves, you know. I was considering it for a while…at least, until I got thrown into Azkaban."

"And what about you?" Hermione turned to Lupin.

"No; never. At least, it would have been something that I would have liked to become, but I would never have had a chance. You know," he shrugged. "The same year I turned seventeen, the Ministry was thinking of outlawing Apparition for werewolves. Luckily, my birthday is in March, so I passed my test before anything could come of that to hinder me," he shrugged.

"Well, I've spoken to Kingsley about it, and he promises that he'll try and disallow some of the more unfair laws around werewolves…at least, the ones relating to werewolves when they're human," she informed them.

"Good. Finally a Minister who's got a decent head on his shoulders," Sirius snorted. "We had a real bunch of dunderheads in there for a while. Where are Harry and Ron?"

"Impromptu Quidditch match," Hermione shrugged. "We figured that since most of Harry's old team was around, and because Oliver so graciously offered, they're showing off to some of the younger kids. Well, Ron isn't, but he went down to watch," she replied. "I came up here to see if there was any news about your mission yet; we've all been worried sick."

"Moony? Pads?" There was a voice from beyond the door.

"Prongs?" Lupin half turned around. "We're in here."

"Oh, good." James walked in. "I was looking for the two of you. Lily's off talking to Dumbledore about something or other…and I thought that maybe the three of us could spend the evening together. You know…as Marauders?" He asked hopefully.

"Nothing I'd enjoy more, my old friend," Lupin replied with a smile. "I've been waiting for this for seventeen years."

"Yeah. I suppose our little 'platonic love' fest didn't really count as Marauder-time, did it?" Sirius grinned as well. "Oh, Jamie, I'd like to introduce you to…"

"Miss Granger, I presume?" James turned to Hermione.

"I…yes!"

"Well, Remus and Sirius have talked about you, and about what a wonderful friend you've been to my son. I must really thank you for that," James added.

"Of course. It's been my pleasure. Being friends with Harry has certainly made life more interesting," she responded.

"It would. We Potters tend to make life interesting."

"James, just how big does your head have to get before it falls off?" Sirius asked, a mischeivious glint in his eyes.

"It's not big, Pads. I'm just telling the truth," James shrugged.

"Well I…ah…Mr. Potter?" Herimone asked tentatively, not really sure if she should be on a first-name basis with the father of one of her best friends.

"James, Hermione. Or Prongs. Mr. Potter is my father," James replied.

"Alright, then…James…I…Merlin's pants, this is awkward!" Hermione blushed.

"Why? Because you think I should be a responsible adult? Because my son and you are such good friends?"

"Because he's _loads _less mature than Arthur Weasley?" Sirius interjected, earning a glare from James.

"Well…well _yes_, I suppose."

"Hermione, you hardly feel awkward speaking to us," Lupin indicated Sirius and himself, "so why should it be any different when talking to James?"

"It just _is, _somehow. I'll try not to make it into a big fuss, though, James," she promised with a smile. "But you think _Felix Felicis _will work?"

"It's pretty foolproof, isn't it?" Sirius asked. "I mean, have you ever heard of it _not _working?"

"No, and when Harry won that little bit from Professor Slughorn in sixth year it certainly did the job. As long as it's brewed properly; I hear it's horribly difficult to get right," Hermione added.

"Severus is doing it, so we shouldn't have a problem there," Lupin shrugged.

"I'm kind of forced to agree," Sirius grimaced. "If there's one thing the smelly git knows how to do, it's brew a decent potion."

"Anyway, it should be done soon. We'll have to try it out tomorrow, I guess, and then hopefully this whole mess will be over and done with," James sighed.

"Well, it had better be tomorrow, because the next day isn't one I particularly want to be traipsing about on," Lupin stated.

"Oh…" Hermione said as the realization hit her. "That's right. Especially because you have no idea what will happen yet."

"Precisely. And I have no desire to find out when I'm not somewhere completely safe. In all this confusion, Severus has hardly had time to brew any Wolfsbane, so we're running on luck alone, I'm afraid."

"I'm sure it will all work out. But I have to ask you something, Remus…those other werewolves you mentioned, are you going to…"

"Yes, if at all possible. Nobody deserves that, and many of them are not bad people; just societal outcasts. Not unlike myself, I suppose, but I at least had people that were there for me," Lupin turned to Sirius with a smile. "But first things first. Wish us luck tomorrow, Hermione."

"Of course. Good luck, then," she smiled as the two men in the portrait turned around and left the office.


	18. Reunions

**Chapter Eighteen**

"This is it, gentlemen…and lady," Sirius amended, as a scowling Lily turned her death glare on him. "This is the moment we've all been waiting for. This time…"

"Cut it, Sirius. You sound like Oliver before a Quidditch match," Fred commented.

"Alright, fine. Bottoms up!" Sirius called, and the seven of them drank their golden _Felix Felicis. _"Well? Anybody feel any different?"

"Has anybody ever _tried _this stuff before?" James asked suspiciously.

"Once," Lupin admitted. "Soon after…you know…I managed to procure a bottle. Had a wonderful day…got a steady job at a Muggle library, but it left me feeling emptier than before."

"Well, you don't have to worry about that anymore," Sirius slung an arm around the shorter man's shoulders. "I just wish I'd taken this back in school…maybe I'd have found the right girl out of all the ones who insisted on chasing me."

"I have a feeling that you'll never find the right girl, Pads. Maybe it's not meant to be," James shrugged.

"Well, whatever, let's get on with this before our luck literally runs out," Sirius exclaimed, nearly bounding through the portrait hole in his evident excitement.

"That stuff's nearly as bad a caffeine for dear Paddy," James grinned.

"Face it, Prongs, _anything _short of water gives Sirius a rush," Lupin shook his head. "Remember, I'm the one that had to live with him for…let's see…I guess nearly five years."

"How did you put up with him, Remus? I would have thrown him out after a week," Lily sighed.

"Extreme patience…and the fact that when I got angry, he tended to listen. He tried very hard not to annoy me for the week before the full moon, because we all know how testy I can get then."

"Plus I'm too darn cute to throw out," Sirius added with a smirk.

"Oh, of course," Lily rolled her eyes, although she was obviously smiling.

000

"Okay, they're both in the same room."

"Is this part of this 'luck' thing?"

"Must be. Why else would they be in the same room?"

"What are they talking about?"

"If some other unnamed people would be _quiet, _maybe we could hear."

"Sorry."

After a second's pause, it was evident that while Bellatrix and Fenrir were having a heated argument about _some_thing, it didn't appear as though they were going to up and leave anytime soon.

"Okay, so what do we do?"

"Burst in and use the spell, of course."

"All of us?"

"Yes, it'll be easier if they don't know who _exactly _is firing the spell."

"Right. On three?" Sirius looked around, the others staring at him with everything from excitement to obvious apprehension written on their faces.

"On three," James echoed, nodding firmly.

"Alright, then. One…two…three!"

000

They burst into the room, causing Bellatrix and Fenrir to cease their argument and turn abruptly around. "Well, well, look who it is. Turning on your old friends, Severus?" Bellatrix hardly seemed surprised or frightened of seven wands pointing at her.

"Hardly my old friend, Bellatrix," Snape replied. "I'll have you know I was Dumbledore's spy for nearly eighteen years."

"Ah. I always knew there was something suspicious about you," she shrugged, still apparently emotionless. "And you, Regulus?"

Regulus merely glared at her, not giving a response.

"Fair enough, then. I presume you're all here to destroy us and thereby end the spell that's been cast. A valid cause, I'm sure, although you're all fools to sacrifice yourselves in the process," she continued.

"Who said anything about sacrificing ourselves?" Sirius asked with a scornful smile.

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it, cousin of mine? The only way to destroy us at once is to employ the use of Fiendfyre, which, of course, would create a vortex that would pull all of you in. But you knew that. So are you just getting impatient, is that it?" She crossed her arms. "Well, go ahead. I could hardly care anymore. My master is no longer among the living or the dead, so what use have I to be here?"

"Don't encourage them," Fenrir growled.

"They're cowards, Greyback. You know that as well as I," Bellatrix sniffed. "They won't do anything."

"Oh, won't we?" Sirius asked. "If you feel that way, you've obviously never heard of…"

"Don't," James hissed, quickly turning to Sirius.

"Ah, little Siri has discovered a spell, has he? A spell, no doubt, that will silence us without any repercussions to yourselves. I suppose I need to tell you that I'm sure my Lord considered this spell as well, and you're all just fooling yourselves. Besides, you'll never be able to get both of us at once!" She started to cackle maniacally, while Fenrir glowered behind her.

"Let's see about that, shall we? It's really been a pleasure knowing you, Bella, but it will be infinitely more enjoyable once you're gone," Sirius raised his wand higher. He glanced at Lupin who nodded almost imperceptibly. As one, they shouted, "_Animus annullo!" _Blasts of silver light shot from their wands, enveloping Fenrir and Bellatrix. Bellatrix let out a shrill screech which cut off abruptly, and when the light faded, both of them were gone.

There was a moment's silence, in which it seemed all sound had been drained from the castle, and then a rumbling, slow and deep at first and soon building to a pitch where it shook the very stone foundations, came. In the same instant, they all bolted from the room, running as fast as was possible to the exit of the castle.

Lupin hesitated for a moment, but he soon began running as well- in the other direction. Sirius and James noticed at once and, motioning the others to keep going, they turned around and soon a stag and a dog were pounding down the hallway after the werewolf.

Catching up to Lupin, Sirius decided to throw caution to the winds and, turning back into a human, tackled the other man around the legs, bringing them both to the floor with a loud crash. "In case you haven't noticed, Remus, the exit is the _other _way,`` Sirius gasped out.

"Sirius, the werewolves! I can't just leave them…trapped like that for eternity!"

"Guys, whatever we're doing, let's do it now," James cut in, looking fearfully up at the collapsing ceiling. "We may be dead, but I don't want to know what'll happen when the ceiling falls in on us."

"Right. Let's go." Sirius let Lupin up, and the three ran swiftly to the room containing the werewolves. As Sirius went to look over the edge of the pit, he realized with a jolt of relief that they were gone…and so was the magical moon that had hung over them.

"What? What is it?" Lupin asked.

"They're gone, Moony. Whatever spell was holding them must have broken when Bellatrix was destroyed," Sirius turned around with a smile.

"Good. Now, I suggest we get ourselves out as well," Lupin returned the smile and the three made their way to the exit.

000

It was later in the afternoon of the same day, and the Marauders (minus Peter, of course), were lying under their favourite tree overlooking the lake on the Hogwarts Grounds. Lily and Snape had gone to talk to Dumbledore, and Fred and Regulus were experimenting with…something in the dungeons, so that gave the others some spare time.

As soon as the curse was broken, more and more spirits began to drift in and out of Hogwarts; it was very rare you would walk down a hall now without seeing somebody else. The sky was a pure, crystalline blue and the sunshine beat down, creating waves of light on the lake.

All three men were laying back on the grass, reliving the many times they had used to come out here at Hogwarts. James to show off and try and grab Lily's attention, Sirius to…well, Sirius to show off his looks, Peter to watch and adore James' every move, and Lupin to study or read a book.

"Brings back memories, doesn't it?" James asked, squinting at the sky through the leafy canopy of the tree above them.

"Sure does." Sirius was lying with his head pillowed on James' stomach, much to the other man's annoyance, but Sirius had claimed that he would not 'dirty his hair by placing it in the dirt.'

"I can't believe we did it, though. I mean, we actually did it," James continued. "I had always imagined I would play a part in the defeat of Voldemort, but then I was taken out of it before I even got a chance to start. Now I feel like I've done something worth noting," he smiled.

"You mean, besides siring the most famous young wizard in the world?" Sirius snorted.

"Hey, I can't help it if I've got such wonderful genes I produced a hero," James replied smugly.

"Actually, I think most of his heroic qualities came from Lily," Lupin commented, earning himself an annoyed look from James.

"Ooh, Prongs is angry. I'm going to move before he decides to get up and pound some sense into us," Sirius sat up, his eyes scanning the ground. "Remus…"

"Yes?"

"Wife at 12 o'clock."

"_What_?" Lupin sat up as well, his eyes seeking out the familiar figure of Nymphadora Tonks strolling across the grounds. As soon as she saw them, she broke into a run. "Remus! Sirius!" She bounded up the hill, ended up tripping over a tree root, and falling somewhat ungracefully on top of Lupin.

"It's good to see you too," he laughed, embracing her warmly.

"What, I don't get a hug, little Nymph?" Sirius mock-pouted, crossing his arms.

"Of course you do, you giant oaf," Tonks tackled her cousin, and the two rolled around in the grass for a while, despite Sirius' protests that it was 'getting dirt all over.'

"And you must be James," she finally stood up and walked to the man in question.

"I am," James held out a polite hand, but Tonks ignored that and promptly smothered him in a hug.

"Harry's a great kid," she told him upon letting go. "And I can see where he gets his looks from," she added with a wink, making James blush. Turning back to her husband, she appraised him with a more thorough glance. "And you, Remus. You're…"

"Young," he finished.

"Yes…"

"And he's darn handsome, too," Sirius added with a grin.

"I can't argue that," Tonks grinned back. Her hair was her usual shade of bright pink, although it was somewhat longer than usual. She looked to be about twenty or twenty-one, Lupin thought…which was preferable to her being a ten-year-old. "I'm glad we're closer to the same age, now. What decides that?"

"The happiest time of your life," James replied.

"Ah. The day I passed my stealth test and became an official Auror," Tonks mused, her eyes dreamy. "I hear Reg's around here somewhere, too?"

"Yeah. The two of you always got along pretty well, right? I mean, you were still a kid when he died, but I think he liked you," Sirius replied.

"But you were my favourite cousin," she confessed with another radiant smile. "And now here you all are, saviors of the afterlife. I wish I could have been there…"

"You did your part. Although I'm sure you wanted to be the one to finally get rid of Bella as much as I did," Sirius shrugged.

"Sure did. But I'm glad you did it, and that she's gone. The world is a better place," she sat down.

Lupin cleared his throat and glanced sideways at Sirius, who pretended to ignore his friend. "Ask her."

"No."

"Come on, Pads. She's your cousin, she doesn't bite."

"What if she says no?"

"Well, you won't know unless you ask."

"Ask me what?" Tonks looked up in confusion.

"Alright. Nymph, ever since I've come out of Azkaban, I've had nightmares. Really bad ones; ones that I wake up screaming from. Your gracious husband, in the summer we revived the Order, often slept in the same bed with me…I found it helped me out a lot. Now, even though I'm not alive, the nightmares haven't gotten any better, and I…well, I had been…that is…" Sirius lapsed into silence.

Tonks blinked at him and then burst out laughing. "You, Sirius Black, are the biggest idiot the world has ever known. You think I'd be jealous if you slept with Remus? Well, you _are _beautiful, but you're also family, and I can't see any reason why I would forbid you from doing it."

"I…really?" Sirius looked at her expectantly, but also like he half-feared she was going to yell at him.

"Yes, 'really,'" she rolled her eyes.

"Thanks, Nymph. You're the best!"

"I know."

"So, does she get your approval, James?" Lupin asked his friend. "I know you've been dying to meet her for yourself."

"Of course she does. More than. And I'll have to introduce you to Lils; you'll get along wonderfully," James said to Tonks.

"I'd like that," she replied earnestly. "And you know what else? I think I'm gonna like it here. Who knows what trouble we can get into."

"A lot, because Fred will be around," Sirius muttered, flopping back down onto the grass and grabbing Lupin's hand to pull him down as well.

"Good. I wouldn't want it to be boring."

At that moment, there was a loud 'bang' from the direction of the castle, and a few moments later the front doors opened, accompanied by a cloud of smoke, and Fred and Regulus dashed out into the sunlight; Regulus looking like there was a giant bat chasing him and Fred laughing his head off. There was a shout of "FRED WEASLEY!" and Lily came rushing after them, followed by Snape who stopped outside the door, crossed his arms, and seemed to be watching the whole thing with veiled interest.

"Yup, things are going to be very interesting indeed."


	19. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

"So? What happened?"

"Have I not taught the three of you that patience is a virtue?" Dumbledore scolded, but it was obvious he was teasing. "If it had been a horrible experience, would I not have told you immediately?"

"Of course you would have, Professor. Harry's just anxious, that's all," Hermione added.

"Ah, well, it's to be expected. As you no doubt have noticed, you can Apparate again. They succeeded remarkably well, and none of them were injured. And as for last night…well, I'm sure Severus is pleased that he will no longer have to brew the Wolfsbane…and no doubt Remus is pleased he no longer has to drink it," Dumbledore smiled knowingly.

"So? What does that mean?" Ron asked.

"Let's just say that our sleep was frequently disturbed by the midnight runnings of a wolf, a dog and a stag," Dumbledore winked.

"So…he's like an Animagus, now? He keeps his mind?" Harry asked, astonished.

"Somewhat. He can't transform at will, though I've no doubt Sirius and James are more than happy to teach him, but in essence: yes. His transformations are painless, he tells me, and the Wolf inside him seems to be more content than ever. Probably has something to do with the reuniting of his pack, I would think," Dumbledore mused.

"Wow. That's great," Ron was beaming. "But I guess we should stop popping up and bothering you, Professor."

"Not at all. I rather enjoy your company," Dumbledore assured them. "But…ah…I have other things to attend to at the moment. Feel free to come anytime; my office is always open to the three of you."

"Thanks, Professor," Harry smiled, and the three left the office.

000

"Get up, get up, get up!" Sirius was doing that infernal bouncing thing again, and Lupin was trying very hard not to sit up and yell at him. The transformations may not hurt anymore, but the Wolf was still very much present and not particularly happy at the moment.

"_What_, Pads?" He finally shook the covers off and shot up.

"Today's your big day!"

"What on earth are you talking about?"

"Well, Nymph was telling me that your wedding was a…to put it mildly…_small _affair. No guests; just you and the priest. So, we're marrying you again, of course! Not that there's a whole lot of us here either, but as your best man, I think…"

"Wait, wait, wait. My _best man_? You've nominated yourself, then, have you?"

"Naturally. Besides, we both know there's no other choice," Sirius grinned.

"Who's marrying?"

"Dumbledore."

"He has a marriage license?"

"Why not? He has everything else," Sirius shrugged. "But come on, we have to figure out what you're going to wear. Prongs and I are dressing you…"

"I'm scared for my life."

"Don't be difficult, Moony." Sirius tugged on his hand and all but pushed him into the bathroom.

"Good, you're here," James grinned at them.

"Guys, _why _are we doing this again?" Lupin asked, still a little bemused.

"Because we can," James replied. "Now, what color robes best match your eyes?"

"You're okay with all of this, then, are you?" Lupin turned back to Sirius.

"Yeah. As long as your little wife is, I'm fine with it," Sirius replied. "Besides, we're cousins-by-marriage now anyway, so…ah…with the exception of Snape, all of us are related in some way or another," he shrugged.

"Pleasant thought that that is," James good-naturedly rolled his eyes. "Related to both of you."

"Oh, hush, Jamie. We feel the same, I'm sure," Sirius returned the jibe.

"But now that things are back to normal…are we allowed to pull some brilliant pranks again?" James asked with a glint in his eyes.

"How could we not, my dear Prongs?" Sirius asked, looking horrified at the thought of _not _pulling pranks. "Yes, things are going to be better than ever. The Marauders are back, my good fellows, and, I daresay, better than ever."

"Hear, hear," James lifted an imaginary glass. "With us, Moony?"

"How could I not be?" Lupin looked at his two best friends, finally starting to feel as young as he looked.

"Good," Sirius clapped him on the back. "And now…let's get _you _properly married."

000

"Harry! _HARRY!_"

"What?" Harry and Ron came pounding up the stairs into the dormitory, and before Ron could berate Hermione for being in their room without permission, she overrode him by gesturing frantically to a picture on Harry's trunk.

Harry walked over, somehow knowing what he would see before he did. And he wasn't disappointed as he lifted the picture with shaking hands, his eyes widening and a smile appearing on his face.

Dumbledore had mentioned something about a wedding, but had been mum on the details. Lupin and Tonks were in the center; both were beaming at the camera and looked happier together than Harry had ever seen them. Sirius was obviously showing off; he kept flipping his glossy black hair over his shoulder with one hand and the other was slung around Lupin's shoulders. James and Lily were on the other side of Sirius, looking every bit the perfect couple. Fred was on the left side of Tonks, winking and giving the camera a thumb's-up. Even Regulus and Snape looked content; the former wearing a smile that could have rivalled Sirius' for handsomeness, and the latter also appearing like he was not just there because he _had _to be; Snape had an almost awed look of being included and being thought of as an equal and a friend.

Harry passed the picture to Ron, who laughed aloud and said, "George has _got _to see this!"

"But I don't get it," Harry glanced over at Hermione. "How could this picture get _here?" _

"_Honestly, _Harry," Hermione tried hard to smother a laugh. "You've been exposed to the Wizarding World for seven years…haven't you learned by now to believe in magic?"

The laughter of the three teens rang through the school, and they knew that, somewhere above them, the ones they cared about were laughing, too. And somehow, the world seemed a little brighter, the laughter a little merrier, and the ones they loved seemed closer than ever.

And that made it all worth it.

**And that's all she wrote, folks! If you've read to the end, thank you so much, and please let me know what you think :D **


End file.
